1. Introduction. – 2. Origins and Concepts of Contract Implied-in-Fact. – 3. Issues of Expression of Will in Contract Implied-in-Fact. – 4. Analysis of Some Practices of Applying Сontract Implied-in-Fact. – 5. Conclusions.
CONTRACTS IMPLIED-IN-FACT LIKE A FORM OF WILL EXPRESSION
Abstract
Background:
Implied-in-fact contracts have been a part of civil legal relations since ancient times. This study aims to test the hypothesis that implied-in-fact contracts are a way to express will. The author also analyses existing doctrinal approaches to understanding and defining implied-in-fact contracts. This makes it possible to create a unified and established knowledge of implied-in-fact contracts from the standpoint of law. The analysis scrutinises the problems of expression of will in implied-in-fact contracts. In addition, it affirms that the conclusion of implied-in-fact contracts is based on freedom of will, the expression of which is the basis for all civil legal relations.
Methods:
The study employed the dialectical method to analyse international and national legislation. The comparative legal method determined similar and divergent characteristics based on empirical research of legal norms and common and continental law doctrine. The genesis of the contracts was demonstrated using the historical method. Contradictions were defined and clarified using formal and logical methods. Additionally, the dogmatic method made it possible to formulate new legal positions and concepts. All methods mentioned were used in their interdependence.
Results and Conclusions:
The study explains the origins and ideas of implied-in-fact contracts, which trace their roots back to Roman law. “Contractus innominate” notably influenced their development, alongside synallagmatic agreement, the principle of “non concedit venire contra factum proprium” and “protestatio facto contraria non-valet”. Implied-in-fact contracts are closely related to estoppel and the concept of stipulation. After all, implied-in-fact contracts have evolved to their modern state and have their counterpart in Сontinental law. At the heart of implied-in-fact contracts are conclusive actions, serving as a way of accepting an offer, determining the form of a contract and expressing will. Conclusive actions are the basis for implied-in-fact contracts. Conclusive actions are characterised by dynamic behaviour in the form of unambiguous actions aimed at the desire to conclude an agreement. However, the absence of a direct normative definition for conclusive actions leads to legal problems in their application.
About Authors
Viktor Savchenko
Ph.D. (Law), Associate Professor, Research Fellow of the Oxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Associate Professor of the Department of Civil Law Disciplines, V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv, Ukraine savchenko.viktor@gmail.com
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7104-3559
Corresponding author: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Project administration, Writing – original draft.
Roman Maydanyk
LL.D., Professor of Civil Law, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine
roman.maydanyk@gmail.com
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1661-0535
Co-author: Supervision, Validation, Writing – review & editing.
Competing interests: No competing interests were disclosed.
Disclaimer: The authors declare that their opinions and views expressed in this manuscript are free of any impact of any organizations.
Copyright: © 2024 Viktor Savchenko and Roman Maydanyk. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
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Keywords
- сontract implied-in-fact, expression of will, contracts, civil law, the autonomy of will, freedom of will, conclusive actions.
Publication history
How to cite it?
- Savchenko V and Maydanyk R, ‘Contracts Implied-in-Fact Like a Form of Will Expression’ (2024) 7(2) Access to Justice in Eastern Europe 283-300 https://doi.org/10.33327/AJEE18-7.2-a000212