What is the requirement that a contract have a lawful purpose?

A contract must have a lawful purpose to be enforceable. That is, the contract cannot violate or cause others to violate the law or public policy.

What are Types of Contracts without a Lawful Purpose?

Crimes and Torts - Contracts that require commission of a crime or tort or violate accepted standards are void. If a contract has both legal and illegal provisions, a court will often enforce the legal provisions and refuse to enforce the illegal ones.

Unconscionable Contracts - An unconscionable contract is one that is so unfair that it is said to shock the conscience. Unconscionability is broken down into substantive unconscionability and procedural unconscionability.

Substantive Unconscionability - This means that the terms of the agreement are so extremely unfair or one-sided in favor of a party that it is unlikely that the other party to the agreement understood its terms.

Procedural Unconscionability - This refers to the conditions under which the contract was formed. The terms of the contract may indicate that one party was taken advantage of by another party with greater bargaining power. Such a contract may be void as against public policy if the circumstances indicate that a reasonable person would not have entered into the agreement without the existence of an undue hardship. In some situations, the undue hardship must have been brought on by the party unduly benefited by the contract.

Contracts that Restrain Trade - Contracts that restrain trade may be illegal and thus void. This is true for contracts that create a monopoly, fix prices, and divide up markets. This is generally the area of antitrust law. A court may also find a contract void if it serves to frustrate economic activity in a manner not covered by antitrust law or it intentionally interferes with contractual relations or unfairly competes.

• Example: An example of a contract that directly prohibits competitive business activity is a covenants not to compete. This type of contract restricts an individual from carrying on a trade or practice. These contracts are held to be void when they are unduly burdensome in their restrictions regarding the time and geographic locations for doing business. A covenant not to compete that has a limited time frame (3-6 months) and a limited jurisdiction (up to 50 miles) is generally enforceable if there is good reason for the restriction.

States are free to pass statutes or develop common law that protects the public interest. A contract that runs afoul of what is deemed necessary for the public good may also be void.

Related Topics

• Contract Law (Intro)

• What is a Contract?
• Contract Theory Definition
• Meeting of the Minds
• Doctrine of Utmost Good Faith 
• Aleatory Contract Definition
• What are the sources of contract law?
• Restatement of Contracts
• Uniform Commercial Code
• Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) 

• What is a Unilateral Contract vs a Bilateral Contract?
• What is an Express Contract vs an Implied Contract?
• What are the requirements to form a Contract (Offer, Acceptance, Consideration)?
• What is an Enforceable Contract vs. a Valid Contract?
• What is a Void Contract vs a Voidable Contract?
• Adhesion Contract 
• What is Mental Capacity to contract?
• What is the requirement of a Lawful Purpose?
• What are common types of Voidable Contract?

• What is an Offer?
• Sum Certain (Contracts) Definition

• When does an offer to contact terminate?
• Counterparty Definition
• Mirror Image Rule?
• Rule for Sale of Goods
• Silence is Not Acceptance?
• Mailbox Rule
• Shrink-wrap Agreement Definition
• Click-Wrap Agreement Definition
• What is Consideration?
• What is Promissory Estoppel?
• When is a contract required to be in writing Statute of Frauds?
• What type of writing satisfies the statute of frauds?
• Exceptions to the Statute of Fraud
• Documents Under Seal
• Who Can Sign Contracts on Behalf of a Company?
• E-Sign Act
• Privity of Contract
• Who are third-party beneficiaries to a contract?
• What is assignment and delegation of a contract?

• When is a party's Duty of performance?
• Aleatory Contract
• What is an Executed contract vs an Executory contract?
• Inchoate Definition
• Evergreen Contract

• What is Performance, Substantial Performance, and Breach of a contract?
• What is performance of a Divisible Contract?
• When is a party's duty of performance discharged?
• What are conditions to Contract (Precedent & Subsequent)?
• Abandonment Option (Contract) Definition
• Cooling Off Rule Definition
• What is tender performance of a contract?
• What are Impossibility and Impracticability
• What is a Frustration of Purpose?
• Waiver or Release from Contract
• Accord and Satisfaction
• Force Majeure Clause
• Novation
• What is a Breach of Contract?
• Repudiation (Contract) Definition
• Anticipatory Repudiation
• Acceleration Clause (Contracts) Definition
• What methods exist for resolving a breach?
• Assumpsit
• What remedies exist for a breach of contract?
• Rescission (Contract)
• Exculpatory Clause
• Hold Harmless Clause
• What is Efficient Breach?
• Organization of a Contract
• How to Read the Contract
• Boilerplate
• Contract Representations & Warranties
• Contract Covenants
• What rules does a court follow in interpreting a contract?
• Addendum 
• Allonge Definition
• What is the Parol Evidence Rule?
• What is a complete integration vs a partial integration?
• Exceptions to the Parol Evidence Rule
• Patent and Latent Ambiguity in a Contract
• Service Level Agreement Definition 
• Offtake Agreement