Question

So, you go into a Best Buy and you want to buy these wonderful, sparkly gadgets called phones. These phones require a signature where you are agreeing to pay a certain amount each month depending on the phone that you like and it gets added onto your contract. You are a 17 and a half year old who just got a job at Chipotle. You are so excited and you want to use your paycheck and sign up for the latest Samsung Galaxy 9 phone. (Not too big, not too small, just right). So you now have the latest phone and you realize that you have just made a contract to but a phone for $47.00 per month for two years. You are only working part-time, and you havent even graduated high school yet. Your parents have told you that because you have a JOB, you can pay for your application fees for the colleges you are applying to. You also are going to have to pitch into the finances of the family and help out with groceries and other necessities in the house. You are overwhelmed and you realize that you cannot pay for all of this stuff, meet all of these obligations, and also make sure that you are getting enough hours at Chipotle to pay your bills. You say to yourself, "I don't need this Samsung Phone." So you say to the phone carrier that you are repudiating the contract because you are too young to understand what it means to be an adult and you cannot manage all of these bills at such a young age.You give back the phone and the box and state that you need to cancel the phone contract.

1. Can a person of this age repudiate the contract at this age? Wouldn't this be unfair to the phone company?

2. Would it be unconscionable for the phone company to still enforce the contract on a person of high school age?

3. Can the phone company go to court and enforce the contract on the child and his parents? Why or why not?

Answer 1

Solution:

1.Yes a person of this age can repudiate the contract if he/she wants.In fact,a minor is considered not to have a capacity to enter into a binding contract.So here,the person is a 17 and 1/2 year old i.e., there is 6 months for him/her to turn into an adult / major.No this is not unfair to the phone company both ethically and legally.Legally because of the non-binding nature of the cobtract due to the age factor as stated above.Ethically because the person is also citing a proper reason while he/she is plaaning to repudiate the contract

2.Yes it would be unconscionable for the phone company to still enforce the contract on a person of high scholl age.

3.No,the company cannot go the court and enforce the contract on the child and parents.This is because of the age factor.But if a clause like the responsibility will lie on the parents (or) something like that is included in the agreement,then the parents are liable to be binding the contract ; so they need to satisfy the criteria in the agreement. In that case the company can go to the court and enforce the same on the parents of the person.

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