Reasonable amount of time

[MacFromOK]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Oklahoma

I hired a guy to do some yard work and tree trimming/removal (approx 3-4 days of work). The contract contains the following statement:

All work, as defined in this paragraph, must be completed within a reasonable amount of time.

Is there a legal definition for "a reasonable amount of time" when used to cover specific actions in a contract? Or is this a legally worthless time frame?

Thanks.

 

[tranquility]

A reasonable amount of time is what the fact finder determines to be a reasonable amount of time.

 

[MacFromOK]

Hmmm... okay, so how would that usually work out on something like this? Weeks? Months? Lol, hopefully not years...

The thing is, if he doesn't do it in a timely manner, continued growth will steadily continue to make it a larger job.

I understand you can't give a precise figure btw. Thanks again.

 

[tranquility]

I wrote what I wrote quite carefully. If you were the judge or the jury, what would you think?

There is no guideline for this. All the facts would need to be brought up and when it is a breach is a matter for argument.

 

[MacFromOK]

Well, since I can't claim to be entirely impartial (nor do I have any experience with the legal system), I really have no idea. But I understand if you don't have enough info to make an educated guess either.

It's not an issue yet, but he was supposed to be here two days ago and now won't even answer or return my calls (I don't suspect anything bad has happened, because I did speak with his stepson). Oddly enough, I couldn't get rid of him before we signed the contract.

Thanks again.

 

[tranquility]

It's not a "guess", but what a reasonable time would be to a reasonable person.

The answer is not "7". The law is meant to handle and describe the entire world of human activity. "Reasonable" has to do with *any* contract, not just yours.

 

[MacFromOK]

It's not a "guess", but what a reasonable time would be to a reasonable person.

Since there apparently is no legal definition of "reasonable," then it depends entirely on the mood/whim/attitude (your choice) of the fact finder(s) on any given day when observing the evidence. Trying to determine what might happen beforehand certainly seems like a guess to me (actually the term "crapshoot" now comes to mind).

The answer is not "7". The law is meant to handle and describe the entire world of human activity. "Reasonable" has to do with *any* contract, not just yours.

I never alluded that my contract was special, all I asked was a general idea of what might be expected under the circumstances provided, and specifically mentioned I didn't expect a precise answer (lol, "7"?).

However, if you (assuming you have legal expertise) can't make an educated guess as to whether weeks or months is a reasonable amount of time to complete 3-4 days of work, then I might as well stop wasting your (and my) time and just flip a coin.

But thanks once again.

 

[tranquility]

Rather than wasting your time doing something useless like coin flipping, why don't you start building up a factual scenario to get things done quickly or have the other party seem unreasonable?

I don't know your contract, you do. How will you argue to the fact finder the other party was unreasonable?

 

[MacFromOK]

I don't know your contract, you do. How will you argue to the fact finder the other party was unreasonable?

You're kidding right? If I knew that, I wouldn't have posted here asking what a "reasonable amount of time" is...

But I guess one point would be whether he ever shows up or not (he was supposed to be here again today, but for the third time he was a no-show).

I do NOT want a lawsuit, I just want the work done. My only reason for posting here was to get an idea of how long I should wait before thinking about hiring someone else. After all, I don't want to be in breach of the contract either, but there is no set date for starting or finishing the job. The only time reference in the contract (other than dates by the signatures) is this sentence:

All work, as defined in this paragraph, must be completed within a reasonable amount of time.

All the work to be done is described in that single paragraph. No consideration has changed hands btw, I just don't want this small job dragged out for months. It could have already been finished if he had started when he said (last Thursday).

 

[tranquility]

No one with any intelligence wants a lawsuit. But, it's often wise to prepare for one.

Pretend you're going in front of your neighbors and going to tell a story as to why you were wronged regarding the work being done in a reasonable amount of time. How would you argue that? What facts do you think you'd need to present to prove it to them?

Your history with this worker. Your history with other workers doing similar jobs. What people generally expect on such contracts. These are all things you could use. Also, what was your conversation with the worker regarding your needs? How do your needs change over time. Next, what have you done to resolve this? Document the calls you've made and the conversation. Maybe send a letter, if you want to get all official you can send it certified with return receipt, explaining how you think he is being unreasonable and asking when he thinks he will complete the job.

Each answer, each step, is something which will tend to influence your neighbors to think you've been more or less wronged. That's what's called building up a factual predicate. When you have enough to convince fair minded people you've been wronged, THAT'S when the delay is unreasonable.

 

[MacFromOK]

Document the calls you've made and the conversation. Maybe send a letter, if you want to get all official you can send it certified with return receipt, explaining how you think he is being unreasonable and asking when he thinks he will complete the job.

Each answer, each step, is something which will tend to influence your neighbors to think you've been more or less wronged. That's what's called building up a factual predicate. When you have enough to convince fair minded people you've been wronged, THAT'S when the delay is unreasonable.

Thank you very, very much. This is valuable information I can actually use.

Best wishes, Mac