Parties to a contract often disagree over the meaning of a contract or one of its terms. When this occurs in the context of a legal dispute, the court often determines the contract\u2019s meaning. The intent of the parties\u2014to the extent it can be ascertained from the contract\u2014determines the meaning of a contract. A court\u2019s primary objective when interpreting a contract is to find and give effect to the intent of the parties at the time the contract was made (as that intent is expressed in the contract).<\/p>\n
If the court concludes that it can determine the parties\u2019 intent from the contract, it will interpret the agreement and that interpretation is binding on the parties (even if the parties disagree with the court\u2019s interpretation). If the intent of the parties cannot be determined from the contract, additional evidence is allowed to help determine the parties\u2019 intent. Then the fact-finder (often a jury, (more…)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Parties to a contract often disagree over the meaning of a contract or one of its terms. When this occurs in the context of a legal dispute, the court often determines the contract\u2019s meaning. The intent of the parties\u2014to the…<\/span><\/p>\n