A buyer submits a written offer to purchase a leasehold property in Hawaii, specifying that the offer must be accepted by 5:00 p.m. on Friday. The seller's broker sends an email acceptance at 4:45 p.m. Friday, but the buyer's broker does not check email until Saturday morning. Under Hawaii contract law, when was the contract formed — if at all?
Correct Answer
A) Friday at 4:45 p.m., when the seller's broker sent the acceptance email
Under Hawaii contract law and the mailbox rule as applied to electronic communications, acceptance sent through an authorized medium is effective upon dispatch (sending), not upon receipt, provided it is sent before the offer's deadline. When the seller's broker sent the email at 4:45 p.m. — within the 5:00 p.m. deadline — the acceptance was effective at that moment, forming a binding contract. The buyer's broker's delay in reading the email does not invalidate the timely acceptance.
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Related Topics & Key Terms
Key Terms:
Related Concepts
An appraisal contingency allows the buyer to cancel or renegotiate the contract if the property's appraised value comes in lower than the agreed-upon purchase price. This contingency protects buyers from overpaying.
An assignment of contract transfers one party's rights and obligations under a contract to a third party called the assignee. The original party, known as the assignor, transfers their contractual position to someone who was not originally part of the agreement.
A bilateral contract is an agreement in which both parties exchange promises and are both obligated to perform, while a unilateral contract is one in which only one party makes a promise and the other party is not obligated to act.
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