Do not joke about contracts. Specifically, do not write out sentences such as "We hereby agree to sell to W.O. Lucy the Ferguson Farm complete for $50,000.00, title satisfactory to buyer" as a joke, even if you're drunk when you write it and you write it on the back of a bar napkin. Do not go and get your wife, the co-owner of said Ferguson Farm, to sign the napkin, all as part of your funny, funny joke.
This is a bad idea, because, sad to say, judges might not think you are making a funny. They may say, in effect, "Mr. Zehmer, I do not like your joke. I do not think you are making a funny ha-ha." This might be bad for you if you want to, say, hold on to your farm instead of sell it for $50,000.
Just keep that in mind next time you're in a bar and you inexplicably feel the urge to write sentences such as the one above because you're such a funny jokester.
This public service announcement brought to you courtesy of Lucy v. Zehmer and my contracts class this morning.
2 comments:
Hi:
I want to commend you on your choice of getting a legal education. I guess my best advice is to not take it too seriously, and try to have fun. I know that's almost an impossible thought when you're still really trying to understand how to brief a case and learn a new language(legalese). For instance, what is a "tort"? Sounds to me like something you have for breakfast. And why are these people already talking about law review and book awards.
Good luck, FG, JD
You're not kidding about the legalese. It is an entirely different language.
Wonder if they'll define what 'is' is. ;-)
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