What is Tender Performance?
Tendering performance means to offer or attempt to perform the agreement. Often a party’s offer or attempt to perform is sufficient to satisfy the condition of performance and obligate the other party’s performance. That is, a party cannot avoid her obligation under the contract by failing to accept the other party’s tender of performance. One party offering or attempting to perform is a condition to the other party’s obligation to perform. Unless a contract states otherwise, the default rules under the UCC and Restatement place conditions on the delivery of services and the delivery of a product by a party to a contract.
What are UCC Condition of Performance?
The UCC states the buyer tendering payment to the seller of a good is a condition that must be satisfied before the seller has the duty to deliver the good.
- Example: I offer to purchase an expensive jacket from you. You accept. I must offer to give you the money before you are obligated under the contract to give me the jacket.
What is the Restatement Condition of Performance?
Similarly, the Restatement requires that a service provider must tender performance before the other party has a duty to pay for those services.
- Example: I offer to paint your house for $500. You accept. I must complete my obligation to paint your house before you are obligated to pay me $500. In this case, tendering performance is completing my duty to paint.
In either case, rejecting a party’s tender of performance can constitute a breach of contract if the tender of performance conforms to the requirements of the contract.
