The Statute of Frauds requires certain contracts to be in writing, but there are exceptions. These include part performance, promissory estoppel, admission under oath, and merchant's confirmation. Each exception has specific criteria and can make an oral contract enforceable.

Understanding these exceptions is crucial for navigating contract law. They provide ways to enforce oral agreements that would otherwise be unenforceable under the Statute of Frauds. Knowing when and how these exceptions apply can make or break a case in contract disputes.

Exceptions to the Statute of Frauds

Exceptions to Statute of Frauds

• Part performance exception applies when a party has partially performed their obligations under an oral contract such as buyer taking possession of land, making improvements, or paying a portion of purchase price
• Promissory estoppel exception applies when a party has reasonably relied on an oral promise to their detriment requires a clear and definite promise, reasonable reliance, and injustice if promise is not enforced
• Admission under oath exception applies when a party admits under oath in court or during a deposition to existence and terms of an oral contract
• Merchant's confirmation exception applies to contracts between merchants for sale of goods worth $500 or more a written confirmation sent by one merchant to another can satisfy Statute of Frauds if not objected to within 10 days

Application of Statute exceptions

• Part performance exception requires party seeking to enforce contract to have partially performed their obligations and partial performance must be unequivocally referable to alleged oral contract
• Promissory estoppel exception requires promisor to have made a clear and definite promise, promisee to have reasonably relied on promise, reliance to have resulted in detriment to promisee, and injustice can only be avoided by enforcing promise
• Admission under oath exception requires party against whom enforcement is sought to admit to existence and terms of oral contract under oath admission must be voluntary and unequivocal
• Merchant's confirmation exception requires both parties to be merchants, contract to be for sale of goods worth $500 or more, written confirmation to be sufficient to indicate existence of a contract, and recipient must not object to confirmation within 10 days of receipt

Consequences of exception reliance

• If an exception applies, oral contract may be enforced despite non-compliance with Statute of Frauds
• Part performance exception may result in court ordering specific performance of contract or awarding damages to performing party
• Promissory estoppel exception may result in court enforcing promise to extent necessary to prevent injustice, which may include awarding reliance damages
• Admission under oath exception may result in court enforcing contract based on party's admission of its existence and terms
• Merchant's confirmation exception may result in written confirmation serving as substitute for signed writing required by Statute of Frauds, making contract enforceable

Comparison of Statute exceptions

• Part performance and promissory estoppel exceptions both involve reliance on an oral promise, but part performance specifically relates to contracts for sale of land or real estate part performance requires partial performance of contractual obligations, while promissory estoppel focuses on detrimental reliance on a promise
• Admission under oath and merchant's confirmation exceptions both provide alternative means of satisfying writing requirement admission under oath applies to any type of contract, while merchant's confirmation is limited to contracts between merchants for sale of goods worth $500 or more
• Part performance exception is based on actions taken in reliance on an oral contract, while admission under oath relies on a party's verbal acknowledgment of the contract
• Promissory estoppel exception is based on reliance on a promise, while merchant's confirmation is based on a written confirmation of an agreement between merchants