Website Contract

[Breakinglink]

I am in Mississippi and I have a friend that signed a contract for a website. On the contract had two different places to sign. It is a 5 page contract, one place was page 3 and the other page 5. All the info before page 3 is different than on page 4 and 5.

He is having issues with the designer. He discovered that he did not sign on page 3 at all. This is the signature for some of the information he is having an issue with the designer over. He did sign page 5.

Does this mean the contract is fully void, partially void or not void at all. Any help is highly appreciated.

 

[quincy]

I am in Mississippi and I have a friend that signed a contract for a website. On the contract had two different places to sign. It is a 5 page contract, one place was page 3 and the other page 5. All the info before page 3 is different than on page 4 and 5.

He is having issues with the designer. He discovered that he did not sign on page 3 at all. This is the signature for some of the information he is having an issue with the designer over. He did sign page 5.

Does this mean the contract is fully void, partially void or not void at all. Any help is highly appreciated.

More than likely, the contract is not void at all.

If your friend is hoping the contract is void because he is now having issues with the designer, your friend should have the contract reviewed by an attorney in his area.

 

[tranquility]

No real answer can be given without reading the contact. But, since most contracts don't need to be in writing or signed, a written contract that is signed seems like it might just be an agreement. (Although it would not be "void" at all. That is a legal term for contracts that has nothing to do with your facts.)

 

[Breakinglink]

Thanks for the help so far, it is really appreciated.

The reason I even suggested that it may be voided or unenforceable (btw I have no idea what the terminology is, I am only using the closest terms that I think could apply) is that on the 3rd page, the first signature spot, it is asking for acknowledgment of understanding for the business details of the contract. The second place to sign on the 5th page is agreeing to the specifications of the website.

He signed the 5th page but not the 3rd.

I have a digital copy of the contract if that makes any difference. I could pull a screenshot of a part of that could help with answering this question.

 

[quincy]

No real answer can be given without reading the contact. But, since most contracts don't need to be in writing or signed, a written contract that is signed seems like it might just be an agreement. (Although it would not be "void" at all. That is a legal term for contracts that has nothing to do with your facts.)

You are being far more precise than I, tranquility.

From Black's on the word "void" as used in law: "The term ... has not at all times been used with technical precision, nor restricted to its peculiar and limited sense ... ; it being frequently introduced, even by legal writers and jurists, when the purpose is nothing further than to indicate that a contract was invalid, and not binding in law."

So, both void or unenforceable are okay terms for you to use to get your idea across, Breakinglink.

That said, no one here can give you an opinion on the specific contract as that goes to "practicing law," which goes beyond the scope of the forum. For that, your friend will need to see an attorney in his own area.

 

[tranquility]

From Black's on the word "void" as used in law: "The term ... has not at all times been used with technical precision, nor restricted to its peculiar and limited sense ... ; it being frequently introduced, even by legal writers and jurists, when the purpose is nothing further than to indicate that a contract was invalid, and not binding in law."

Far be it from me to argue with a website that stole the phrase from a book written in 1895. (Or, before. But check out volume xxviii of "The American and English Encyclopedia of Law". It's a free ebook on Google!) In my world, void has a specific meaning. Brave New World "strength" indeed.

The reason I even suggested that it may be voided or unenforceable (btw I have no idea what the terminology is, I am only using the closest terms that I think could apply) is that on the 3rd page, the first signature spot, it is asking for acknowledgment of understanding for the business details of the contract. The second place to sign on the 5th page is agreeing to the specifications of the website.

The usual reason for such signature blocks inside a contract is to keep people from arguing they didn't understand some of the terms as they were hidden in a huge block of legalese. Such a signature may estop a person from arguing they didn't know what the contract contained. But, that does not make the terms unenforceable. There is a signed agreement out there. One side will argue both parties agreed to the terms. The other party will claim he didn't understand the terms even though he purportedly read them. Even with a review by an attorney, the answer will not be the contract is unenforceable. The answer will be, "it depends". It will depend on all the surrounding facts as well as the specific wording of the contract. I think the burden will be on your friend if he wants to differ from the written contract to prove up his position with more than a claim he didn't understand the contract.