If a term or condition stated in a sales contract is unreasonable would it be able to be rebutted in court?

Answer 1

Any contract can be attacked in court. But it's a contract. It is a legal document that was drafted to withstand legal attack. And in this day and age, the contract law is pretty clear as regards issues of consumer credit (assuming that this is the issue here - which it sounds like). Let's back up. You entered into a sales agreement by signing a contract. You and the seller are bound by the terms and conditions of that contract. Your signature indicates your willingness (at the time) to accept the terms and conditions set forth. (Yes, it does.) It can be argued that your signature indicates that you also understood and agreed to the terms and conditions, which were not then unreasonable to you. By the way, a lot can be said about what is unreasonable and what is not. Almost any term or condition can be written into a contract. Terms and conditions may go light years beyond unreasonable to the point of being outrageous or absurd, but, if they is written into a contract and the meaning is spelled out to the person signing, they pass from being unreasonable (or whatever) into the realm of being terms and conditions of a contract. And they can be upheld in court. That is what contracts are all about; it is why they were invented and refined and why they are used today. It is somewhere between difficult and impossible to fight the terms and conditions of a contract. That's why the contract is drawn up the way it is - to lock the parties in. You were offered a contract. You did not feel that what was being asked was, at the time, unreasonable. You signed. It's pretty much a done deal. About all you can do is fight the circumstances around the presentation of the contract. The finance representative put the contract in front of you, explained it and answered any questions you had, and you will be taking issue with that. Anything else is pretty much a wash. Did the financial advisor who went over the contract with you fail to make clear the terms of the contract? Were you not asked if you had any questions? Were you not given every opportunity to review the agreement and back out of it before you signed? Was the representative you dealt with unprofessional in the execution of his duties? Negligent? Did he not "do things right" when working with you? Your problem is with a contract term, and about the only way you can fight a provision of a contract is by making (and proving) that it was not made clear to you or that something was misrepresented. That's the bottom line. Here's why (and it may be repetitious). The contract is pretty much "bulletproof" from the point of view of being challenged. Think about the contract. The thing is preprinted! It is a legal document that was prepared with professional legal input - a lawyer drew it up! The form the contract takes is has been refined to "close loopholes" by clearly stating the expectations of both parties. The finance guy just puts in the numbers, explains it, answers questions and gets your signature. Note that the finance guy is a professional. He is trained to do exactly what he does and to do it in a way that meets the requirements of law. He does this to protect the lender, and to protect himself. The contract and the financial representative are links in a chain between the lender and the buyer (borrower). The finance rep knows he's the weak link in the chain, and he knows how to act to keep things on the "up and up" so no legal challenge can be mounted successfully. As mentioned, he is a pro, and he is protecting himself from legal attack by "doing the right thing" as regards explaining the contract and its provisions and by answering any questions. You need professional legal advice. There are a lot of practitioners, and they will give you some free or low-cost time, at least upon an initial consultation. Find an attorney or paralegal in your area and go chat for a few minutes. Then weigh your options. Good luck.