Offer And Acceptance in United States

Practical Information

Note: Some of this information was last updated in 1982

Before a contract can be formed, there must be an offer by one party, called the offeror, to do or to refrain from doing a certain thing, and an acceptance of the proposal by another party, called the offeree. An offer is considered open until it is revoked, rejected, or accepted, or until after the lapse of a reasonable time. The only case in which an offeror cannot withdraw an offer before acceptance is the case in which he or she has entered an option (in U.S. law) contract, which is an agreement supported by the payment of a sum of money, or for some other consideration, to hold an offer open for a definite period. An acceptance is an indication by the offeree of his willingness to be bound by the terms of the offer. The acceptance may take the form of an act, the signing and delivery of a written instrument or of a promise communicated to the offeror. Silence on the part of the offeree is not an acceptance unless the previous dealings between the parties create a duty upon the part of the offeree to accept or reject the offer. The acceptance must be unequivocal and must show an intention to accept all the terms of the offer. In the language frequently used by the courts, there must be a “meeting of the minds” of the offeror and the offeree. See Contract here and see Competent Parties in Contracts here.

(Revised by Ann De Vries)

What is Offer And Acceptance?

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