Corporate agreements often involve a lot of details. It is usually those details that are the most important part. If any of those details are missing, then a corporate agreement can fall apart. There needs to be a meeting of minds in a contract, if that connection is not there, then the agreement is basically void.
A medical research center, E.A Conway in Monroe, was interested in being overseen by the Biomedical Research Foundation of Louisiana. LSU permitted a joint agreement between the two organizations. The agreement gave control of the medical centers affiliated with E.A. Conway in Monroe and Shreveport to the Biomedical Research Foundation. The problem is that the agreement is thought to be incomplete. It was missing important details and even had some empty pages, according to representatives. There is concern that the people most influenced by the changes have not been made aware of the details. There is particular concern over a lack of financial data in the agreement.
A contract consists of an offer, acceptance and some form of consideration or incentive for the parties to enter into a contract. All of the parts of a contract need to be there to convey the proper meaning. The contract should include all feasible outcomes and have no vagueness or uncertainty.
Having a contract that is incomplete seems to take away from the whole idea of entering into an agreement. It gives an unfair advantage to one side, either by leaving out something the other party would have objected to, or not having an item that is crucial to the agreement. Perhaps leaving blank pages and incomplete details seemed in theory to be a good idea. It left room for additions or changes, but it also left the vagueness that is often argued in the courts, when there is a contract dispute.
In a contract, the details are often crucial. When there is a conflict, the court goes to that document to see what the parties initially intended. Blank pages show ambiguity, and it gives others, in this situation, the public, a lack of clarity. Having an expert in business contracts can help avoid ambiguity and confusion when contracting.
Source: The News-Star.com, “A few facts shy of a contract,” May 30, 2013.
