Contract - Affirmative Defenses

Affirmative Defenses

Vitiating factors constituting defences to purported contract formation include:

  • mistake;
  • incapacity, including mental incompetence and infancy/minority;
  • duress;
  • undue influence;
  • unconscionability;
  • misrepresentation/fraud; and
  • frustration of purpose.

Such defenses operate to determine whether a purported contract is either (1) void or (2) voidable. Void contracts cannot be ratified by either party. Voidable contracts can be ratified.

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