Contracts and Minors - Can they sign?

Toronto Marlboro Junior A. Hockey Club Logo

Today we will be looking at whether or not minors have the legal right to sign a contract, and if so is it enforceable by law?

To start off simply before getting more in depth the basic answer to the questions above is; yes a minor can sign a contract and no it is not enforceable by law. These are two broad principles that I will be delving into and breaking down in more of a sporting context.

Linking to my above statement that minors can sign contracts; This means that yes minors who are in participating in sport whether it be junior hockey players, phenom gymnasts, potential olympic divers or any sport that young athletes can strive in are technically allowed to sign into contracts. You're probably wondering than if all of these young athletes are allowed to sign contracts than why above did you say that no they are not enforceable by law? Well, first of all they are "generally" unenforceable by law and secondly they are generally unenforceable because of provisions that have been adopted by common law to protect minors from making onerous and  naive decisions (Fitzgerald & Oliver, 2000). 

Yes, it is true that minors can sign the dotted line but in most cases, especially in sport, these contracts will not hold up in a court of law. The provisions that protect minors from these contracts are simply as follows:

1. Contract's signed by minors are not enforceable unless they are for the necessities of life.
2. Contract's can be repudiated by minors making them either Void ab initio or a Voidable contract.

Defining the legal terms above:

• Repudiate: to renounce or reject an obligation. 
• Void ab initio: Invalid from the beginning; no rights can arise under a contract that is void ab initio
• Voidable Contract: A contract that may be avoided or declared void at the option of one party to the contract; once it is declared invalid no further rights can be obtained under it, but the benefits obtained before the declaration are not forfeit.

What this all essentially means is that minor's (young athletes) can repudiate their contracts with sport organizations, hockey clubs etc. and the party that they have signed with cannot enforce said contract. This is because most contracts that these young athletes are signing are not for the necessities of their life. They may have some general terms that are beneficial to the athlete but the essence and general purpose of the contracts do not comply with the provision of necessity of life. 

A great example of a minor being able to repudiate his contract was the case of The Toronto Marlboro Major Junior A Hockey Club v. Tonelli. 

This case is a perfect example because it looks at the contract signed between a minor (Tonelli) and a Major Junior hockey club and shows how although the contract did have some beneficial terms in the contract its overall purpose and essence was overly onerous and not necessity to Tonelli's life. To break the case down as simple as possible I will use bullet points and then explain the court's findings.

• Tonelli was a minor, and a very talented hockey player (high potential to play professional hockey). 
• He signed a contract with the Toronto Major Junior A hockey club
• The contract he signed seems very beneficial, offering new equipment, paying for travel expenses and even offering meals on road games.
• There was also a clause in the contract that if Tonelli were to turn pro he would have to give 20% of his gross contract to the Toronto Major Junior Hockey Club
• Tonelli, turns pro receiving a large sum of money to play(total of 320,000 over 3 seasons)
• The Toronto Marlboro Major Junior A Hockey Club demanded that Tonelli pay 20% of his newly signed pro contract.

What the court decided was basically that this contract, which was signed when Tonneli was a minor, is not a necessity to his life, even though it contained some rather beneficial conditions. The contract could therefore be repudiated by Tonelli and would not be an enforceable contract by law. 

In conclusion, yes minors can sign contracts, but if the contract is not for the necessity of their life than the courts will find the contract to either be void ab initio or voidable.

Thank you,

G.M. 

Fitzgerald, J., & Olivo, L. (2000). Fundamentals of contract law. Toronto, Canada: Emond Montgomery Publications.