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4.1-1  Elements of an Express Contract

Revised to January 1, 2008

The plaintiff claims that (he/she/it) entered into a contract with the defendant.  A contract is an agreement enforceable at law.  Contracts may be express or implied. If the agreement is shown by the direct words of the parties, spoken or written, the contract is an express one.  If such agreement can only be shown by the acts and conduct of the parties, interpreted in the light of the subject matter and of the surrounding circumstances, then the contract is an implied one.

Authority

Janusauskas v. Fichman, 264 Conn. 796 (2003); Boland v. Catalano, 202 Conn. 333, 338-39 (1987); Skelly v. Bristol Savings Bank, 63 Conn. 83, 87 (1893); Atlas v. Miller, 20 Conn. App. 680, 683 (1990); Hale v. Benvenuti, Inc., 38 Conn. Sup. 634, 638-39 (1983); 1 Restatement (Second), Contracts §§ 1, 4.

Notes

There is no need to refer to both implied and express contracts if only one is at issue.