Sale to the blind

[MUCKACHOO]

My mom was legally blind. A company came to her home and sold to her their goods and services. There was a singed contract between my mother and the company. My mother passed and I obtained the original contract of the sale. "I thought that if a person was blind, that in order for it to be a legal contract, a second signature was needed of friend or family member?" There are only three signatures on the contract: My Mother's and two representatives from that company. "Is that legal?"

 

[Michael Wechsler]

Originally posted by MUCKACHOO:
My mom was legally blind. A company came to her home and sold to her their goods and services. There was a singed contract between my mother and the company. My mother passed and I obtained the original contract of the sale. "I thought that if a person was blind, that in order for it to be a legal contract, a second signature was needed of friend or family member?" There are only three signatures on the contract: My Mother's and two representatives from that company. "Is that legal?"

I don't know the answer for sure but my understanding of contract law would lead me to the following conclusion. If your mom knew what was contained on the paper and agreed, it would be a legally binding contract. However, the aforementioned is a burden that the company needs to prove and it would probably not be sufficient to have the representatives of the company state that they were in her presence and she knew what was contained on the paper.

A contract requires the following elements: (1) an offer made by a party, (2) an acceptance made by another party, and (3) the exchange of "consideration" or something of value. Your mom would have to be shown to have accepted the terms on the paper. On the surface it would seem that no one can testify other than the offering party that she accepted the terms as stated on the paper that she could not see.

If someone signs an instrument being told that it is something other than it is, that person is not liable (fraud).

It is possible that a notary can notarize a blind person's signature provided the notary reads the document to the blind person or that the document is signed by two disinterested witnesses attesting to the consent of the blind person. I believe that this varies according to state law but can't be sure.