Proof of your contract

In an earlier post, I mentioned that for breach of contract cases, you may have to prove the terms of the contract between you and the other party.

Besides any written document that you sign, what other documents might contain other contract terms? Some of the documents that the other party may have used and which you may argue form part of the contract -

a) newspaper advertisements of the other party;
b) television commercials;
c) brochures;
d) catalogues; and
e) even webpages (print these out if necessary and noting the date on the print out).
Copies of all these documents should be provided to the court and to the other party during any Tribunal hearing.

Advertisements are important in showing what can be expected by a customer from a vendor or service provider. I remember a case (not in the Small Claims Tribunal) where the other party, a awning installer, had sued a food court operator for the installation fees. The awning installer had advertised the safety aspect of its products and services in the Yellow Pages. Yet, the awning collapsed after a heavy rain. The court was not impressed with the awning installer's claim and dismissed it.