Bundled Terms
Contracts where a legally valueless term is bundled with a term that does have legal value are still generally enforceable.
Consider the uncle's situation above. If the same uncle had instead told his 17 year old nephew the following offer: "if you do not smoke cigarettes and do not engage females before your 18th birthday, then I will pay you $500". On the nephew's 18th birthday, he asks the uncle to pay up, and this time, in the subsequent lawsuit, the nephew may win. Although the promise of not smoking was not valuable consideration (it was already legally prohibited), virtually all states allow some sort of engagement by minors. Even though the engagement by minors is legally restricted, there are circumstances where it is legal, and thus the promise to forbear from it entirely has legal value. However, the uncle would still be relieved from the liability if his nephew smoked a cigarette, even though that consideration is valueless, because it was paired with something of legal value; therefore, adherence to the entire, collective agreement is necessary.
Read more about this topic: Consideration
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