Can you believe what Innisfree Bookshop did to my 13 yr.old?

[Tired of Waiting]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Diana View Post
If this was the case, why would any merchant in their right mind make any sale to a minor? If the transaction could be voided for any reason on the grounds that it was not a valid contract?

Originally Posted by M/V_Bear_II

Exactly.

ToW, I never contradicted anything you said about the definition of a contract. I only noted that a retail transaction, while still a contract, is not written. I added the qualifier in my initial post because there is a lower threshold for compliance and enforcement.

I am pretty sure there is case law on this, but I am not a lawyer, and I'll defer to any civil attorneys on the forum.

Pleas use this link as a reference.

New Hampshire Department of Justice:
http://doj.nh.gov/consumer/sourcebook/1st_word.html

Please read these word carefully! They are not my words but from the NH Dept. of Justice!

“Under some special instances, no matter how much gets said or written down, a contract may not be formed or the law may not enforce an agreement. For example, some people do not have the age (such as minor children) or mental capacity that the law requires to make their contracts binding.”

The minor is not voiding a contract as the contract never existed in the first place. When I said the minor could void the contract I misstated what I was trying to say. The contract never existed in the first place so therefor the transaction is not enforceable by the merchant.

As for why a merchant would do business with a minor? Because it’s good business. Very few minors try to void their sales and fewer folks know that they can. In the long run the merchant makes out from these sales.

Here’s more from the same link. This goes to the heart of the issue at hand for the credit only policy:

“The terms "unfair or deceptive act or practice" and "unfair method of competition" have developed special legal meanings yet remain difficult to define. Often people have a different idea of what is "unfair or deceptive" than do courts or lawyers. For example, a retail store may have a policy of refusing to grant refunds, granting instead credits only to be used at the store. Many consumers think that such a policy is "unfair" or "deceptive." However, if the policy is fully and accurately disclosed to customers by the store then a court will very likely enforce it.”

Again these are not my words but from the Dept of Justice.

ToW

[jeffk]

Originally Posted by Tired of Waiting

Quote:
Please read these word carefully! They are not my words but from the NH Dept. of Justice!

“Under some special instances, no matter how much gets said or written down, a contract may not be formed or the law may not enforce an agreement. For example, some people do not have the age (such as minor children) or mental capacity that the law requires to make their contracts binding.”

The minor is not voiding a contract as the contract never existed in the first place. When I said the minor could void the contract I misstated what I was trying to say. The contract never existed in the first place so therefor the transaction is not enforceable by the merchant.

ToW

This seems to have already been addressed by Skip in his previous post. There are different levels of contracts. A minor can not sign a charge card or loan agreement but it is common law understanding that a child over the age of 7 DOES possess the mental capacity to participate in simple purchase agreements.

So the child could enter into such a purchase contract and the store does promote its policy. Take the credit and buy something else.