A contract is a civil law act that regulates the relationship between the parties, which can be both citizens, individuals, and enterprises, legal entities. Since this is a legally binding document, certain requirements are imposed on it, which must be met without fail. Such requirements include the presence of essential conditions in its text.
What are the terms of the contract
Article 421 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation says that the conditions for concluding a contract can be determined by agreement of the parties involved in the transaction, unless they are essential for this type of contract. When such a transparency norm has not been established for a contract and other conditions have not been negotiated by the parties, those of them that are determined by the customs of business turnover, typical for this type of contract, are applied to it.
The presence of such conditions in the contract is a mandatory legal norm, since in its form this document is an agreement of the parties in relation to these conditions. It can be considered concluded only after the signatures of the counterparties attest to the achievement of these agreements, in accordance with Art. 432 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Therefore, some of the conditions, without which it is impossible to sign and conclude an agreement, are considered essential. Those conditions that do not require reaching an agreement are considered normal.
Types of contract terms
The list of specific essential conditions that must be reflected in the contract are often determined by its type, but in general, the law refers to such conditions:
- conditions on the subject of the contract;
- the conditions in respect of which an agreement is to be reached, entered by the parties;
- conditions that are essential for contracts of this type.
In each specific case, the list of essential conditions is determined separately.
So, for example, the subject of a contract in a purchase and sale transaction is a commodity; when concluding a lease agreement - premises, equipment or land plot transferred for lease; in a work contract - work to be done. In some cases, as when concluding a lease agreement for non-residential premises, the law requires a detailed description of it with an indication of the cadastral number, postal address and other signs that make it possible to uniquely identify the subject of the agreement.
Those conditions that are included in the text of the agreement at the suggestion of one of the parties, lawyers call "accidental", but an agreement must be reached on them. For example, in a sale and purchase transaction, the seller may include in the contract a clause on the timing and procedure for payment of the cost of the goods.
Conditions that are essential for different types of contracts include:
- the price of the contract for a retail sale and purchase transaction;
- delivery time when concluding a supply contract;
- the price of the real estate object, if a real estate purchase and sale agreement is concluded;
- a list of persons who will continue to use the dwelling when concluding a contract for the sale and purchase of dwellings;
- the place and term for the provision of services, if a contract for the provision of services is concluded, etc.
