Legal Definitions - Unenforceable

Definition: An unenforceable contract is a valid agreement that cannot be enforced by a court. This means that if one party breaches the contract, the other party cannot seek damages or force the breaching party to perform their obligations. The court will not intervene because of reasons such as dubious benefit to any party, or extreme physical hazard to one party.

• A contract between two parties where one party agrees to sell their kidney to the other party for $10,000 is unenforceable because it is illegal and against public policy.
• A contract between an employer and employee that requires the employee to work more than 80 hours a week without overtime pay is unenforceable because it violates labor laws.

These examples illustrate the definition of an unenforceable contract because they both involve agreements that are not legally valid. In the first example, selling organs is illegal and against public policy, so the court will not enforce the contract. In the second example, the contract violates labor laws, so the court will not enforce it either.