Which type of contract includes provisions that qualify or limit the obligations of the writer?

A conditional contract is a type of agreement that includes specific provisions, often referred to as conditions, which must be met for the contract to remain valid or enforceable. These conditions outline the obligations of the parties involved and can qualify or limit the writer’s obligations based on certain events or circumstances occurring or failing to occur.

For example, in a conditional contract, a party may agree to perform a certain action only if a specific condition is fulfilled, such as payment being received or a permit being granted. This inherently creates a level of uncertainty, which defines the nature of the obligations. The obligations are thus not absolute but contingent upon the occurrence of the stipulated conditions.

By comparison, other contract types do not inherently limit obligations based on conditions in the same way. A fraud involves deceit or misrepresentation, while a commutative contract typically entails exchanges of equal value without conditional provisions. An aleatory contract relies on uncertain events to determine the outcome, such as insurance policies, but does not specifically outline limitations of obligations in the same manner as conditional contracts do. Therefore, the defining characteristic of a conditional contract lies in its reliance on conditions that can either create or negate obligations.