Can I unilaterally change terms of a contract?


Answer: The general rule is no. If a party were allowed to unilaterally change the term of a contract, there may be no value in having a contract in the first place as an obvious change would be to change what a party has promised in the contract to little or nothing at all. This would erode any value of having a contract in the first place. However, there are contracts that allow a party to unilaterally change certain terms of the contract but they should not take away the substantial benefit of the contract from the other party or parties. If a party has agreed to allow the other to vary any of the terms of the contract, this is not ideal and the implications would depend on the extent and nature of the variations made. It is therefore prudent for both parties to avoid provisions to allow unilateral changes to the contract or at the very least, expressly limit the scope of unilateral changes.