Pizza-Box Contracts: True Tales of Consumer Contracting Culture
Wake Forest Law Review, pp. 863-901, 2010
40 Pages Posted: 13 May 2011
Date Written: May 12, 2011
Abstract
Do you ask for contract or purchase terms prior to completing your everyday purchases? Do you first read the pizza box before paying the pizza delivery guy or gal? Typical consumers do not ask for or read their contracts prepurchase, and companies have become accustomed to burying purchase terms in product packaging or Internet links. These postpurchase, rolling, or “pizza-box” contracts have therefore become the norm in the consumer marketplace, and courts generally enforce them as legitimate contracts. This Article discusses varying theoretical perspectives on enforcement of these pizza-box contracts, and explores the available empirical data bearing on the legitimacy of post-purchase consent. It also adds some relevant results from the recent e-survey I conducted of consumers’ contracting behavior. The Article concludes by inviting further study and debate regarding enforcement of postpurchase terms. Further study and consideration of the meaning of contractual consent is especially important in light of the increasing prevalence of postpurchase terms with respect to online/e-contracts.
Keywords: arbitration, confidentiality, dispute resolution, contracts, Federal Arbitration Act, ADR
JEL Classification: K12, K41, K30, K10, K39, K00
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation