More Than You Wanted to Know about the Doctrine of Reformation

Reformation is a legal doctrine that allows a court to fix mistakes in written contracts or agreements if they don’t accurately reflect what the parties intended. It’s a way to make sure everyone is on the same page and that the written document matches what was actually agreed upon. It’s like a safety net for lawyers and can help avoid messy legal problems. In simple terms, reformation is a legal remedy that allows a court to fix mistakes in a written agreement. This can happen if there was a mistake or fraud when the agreement was made, and if there is clear evidence of the mistake. The goal of reformation is to make sure the written agreement accurately reflects what the parties actually agreed to. It’s important to note that reformation cannot be used to change what the agreement actually says, only to fix mistakes. Reformation can also be used to add missing information to the agreement, like a signature. And if there is a mistake in a mortgage, for example, reformation can be used to fix that too. The legal doctrine assumes that what is written in a contract is what both parties meant. If there was a mistake when the contract was signed, it must have been a mistake by both parties. If there was only a mistake by one party, it’s really hard to cancel the contract. It’s better to fix the mistake than to cancel the contract. However, some mistakes, like ones involving government rules or gifts, can’t be fixed. And if the mistake is about a law, it still counts as a mistake. In the past, it was hard for people to prove that a written document had a mistake that both parties agreed on. The courts used a confusing “reasonable doubt” standard of proof, but that was later corrected to “clear and convincing” evidence. If a document like a deed has a mistake, the person can fix it by following the chain of ownership, but there is a time limit for how long they can do this. For deeds, it’s 20 years, and for other documents, it’s five years. If the mistake is based on fraud, the time limit is four years. The doctrine of reformation allows a court to change the language of a legal document if there was a mistake when it was originally written. The court can also enforce the changed document. The court’s findings are usually considered correct. The “clear and convincing” standard of proof is required for reformation, which means there must be strong evidence that a mistake was made. This policy helps ensure that people are not held to agreements they never actually agreed to. It’s interesting to note that decisions made by courts 100 years ago still set precedent today. This doctrine is important for lawyers and their clients who need to fix mistakes in legal documents.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/more-than-you-wanted-to-know-about-the-doctrine-of-reformation/