商務(wù)英語中contract與agreement不同
商務(wù)英語中contract與agreement不同
小編為大家整理了商務(wù)英語中contract與agreement的不同，希望對你有幫助哦!
商務(wù)英語中contract與agreement的不同：
一、什么是“Contract”?
1999年中國《合同法》第二條對contract定義為：A contact in t his Law refers to an agreement establishing, modifying and terminating the civil rights and obligations between subjects of equal footing, that is ,between natural persons, legal persons or other organizations. 根據(jù)這一定義，合同平等主體之間設(shè)立的確定民事權(quán)利和義務(wù)的協(xié)議。
Steven H. Gifts編著的“Law Dictionary”中將contract 定義為“contract is a promise, or a set of promises, for breach of which the law gives remedy, or the performance of the which the law in some way recognize as a duty.”根據(jù)這一定義，合同是一種承諾，違反承諾可以得到法律救助，某種意義上法律將履行該承諾看做是一種補償。
綜合起來，有一個相同點，就是“Contract is an agreement”，即可將事同說成是“An agreement which binds the parties concerned”或者說成是“An agreement which is enforceable by law”，也可以說：Contracts are promises that the law will enforce。
二、什么是“Agreement”?
L.B “A consensus of mind, or evidence of such consensus, in spoke or written form, relating to anything done or to be done.”根據(jù)這一定義，協(xié)議是對已經(jīng)做或準(zhǔn)備做的相關(guān)事宜，經(jīng)過談判、協(xié)商后取得一致意見，以口頭或書面形式做出的約定。
Black “Law Dictionary”有兩個定義。一個是：“A concord of understanding and intention between two or more parties with respect to the effect upon their relative rights and duties, of certain past or future facts or performance”根據(jù)這一定義，協(xié)議即雙方或多方京某些過去或?qū)砟承┦聦嵉南嚓P(guān)權(quán)利、義務(wù)或相關(guān)權(quán)利、義務(wù)的履行而達(dá)成的一致理解和愿望。
另一個是：The consent of two or more persons concurring respecting the transmission of some property, right or benefits, with the view of contacting an obligation, a mutual obligation.根據(jù)這一定義，協(xié)議即兩個或多個當(dāng)事人，為了約定單方責(zé)任或相互責(zé)任，就財產(chǎn)權(quán)利、利益的轉(zhuǎn)移取得的一致同意。
三、Contract和Agreement是否可互換
合同的成立必須具備幾個主要因素。它們(要約和承諾構(gòu)成的)協(xié)議、約因、設(shè)立法律關(guān)系的愿望和締約能力四大部分組成。L.B Curzon編著的“A Diction of Law”提到“Contract generally involves”：
1. offer and absolute and unqualified acceptance (要約和絕對接受)
2. consensus ad idem (意思表示一致，也叫meeting of minds)
3. intention to create legal relations (建立合同關(guān)系的意愿)
4. genuineness of consent (同意的真實性)
5. contractual capacity of the parties (合同當(dāng)事人的締約能力)
6. legality of object(標(biāo)的物的合法性)
7. possibility of performance (履行的可能性)
8. certainty of terms(條款的確定性)
9. valuable consideration(等價有償)
Black “Law Dictionary” 中解釋道：Although often used as synonyms with "contract", agreement is a broader term, e.g. an agreement might lack an essential element of a contact." 即“協(xié)議”和“合同”經(jīng)常用作同義詞，但“協(xié)議”這一術(shù)語含義更廣，例如協(xié)議可能缺乏合同的必備條款(essential clauses/provisions)。
實際使用當(dāng)中，協(xié)議可不受必備條款的限制，而稱為合同的文體肯定少不了必備條款，有的合同將其單列，稱為一般條款(General provisions)。1999中國《合同法》第十二條規(guī)定了八項一般條款，分別是：
1. title or name and domicile of the parities(當(dāng)事人的名稱或姓名和住址)
2. contract object(標(biāo)的)
3. quantity(數(shù)量)
4. quality(質(zhì)量)
5. price or remuneration(價款或者報酬)
6. time limit, place and method of performance (履行期限、地點和方式)
7. liability for breach of contract(違約責(zé)任)
8. methods to settle disputes (解決爭議的方法)
上述解釋說明，contract(合同)和agreement(協(xié)議)的概念雖然接近，但使用范圍不同，不能互換使用。合同是協(xié)議的重要組成部分，所有合同一定是協(xié)議，而協(xié)議不見得都是合同?？梢哉f具備合同成立要求的具有強制執(zhí)行力的協(xié)議才是合同。
四、商務(wù)英語合同結(jié)構(gòu)特點
合同類法律文件用以規(guī)定當(dāng)事人的權(quán)利與義務(wù)，是預(yù)防與解決爭議的依據(jù)。合同英語行文慎密而準(zhǔn)確，歷史悠久，深含法律文化底蘊。中文的合同開頭一般先羅列當(dāng)事人的名稱、姓名、住所或營業(yè)場所，然后是合同正文，結(jié)尾是當(dāng)事人印章、授權(quán)代表簽字、職務(wù)及簽字日期。而英語合同一般以下面這類句式為開頭：
This agreement/contract is made and entered in to this ____ day of _____(month), _______ (year) by and between Party A (hereinafter called " Party A ")and Party B(hereinafter called " Party B ")
然后是開始陳述：
WHEREAS...THEREFORE
… It is hereby agreed as follows:
或以：
WITNESSETH, WHEREAS…
NOW THEREFORE, for and in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements contained herein, the parties hereby covenant and agree as follows:
接著是正文，最后是證明部分：
IN WITNESS WHEREOF，the parties hereto have hereunto set their hands the day and years first above written.
隨后還包括當(dāng)事人和見證人的簽字。簽字日期一般在英文合同最搬弄是非是找不到的。
五、新加坡合同格式
Agreement
THIS AGREEMENT is made the 9th day of August, 2001 between LUCKY INTERNATIONAL LTD, a company incorporated in Singapore and having its registered office at Telek Blongar Rise, Singapore 19569 (hereinfater called "The Company") of the part and JACK Wong (NRIC No._________ /A) of 108 Orchar Road, Singapore 01688 (hereinfater called "The Mangager") of the other part.
WHEREAS:
1. The company is engaged in IT business and requires a person with the necessary qualifications and experience to manage its business.
2.
….
NOW IT IS HEREBY AGREED as follows:
1. The company shall employ the Manager and the Manager shall serve the Company as manager of the Company’s IT business for a period of two years commencing on 1st day of September
2.
….
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have set their hand the day and year first above written.
THE SCHEDULE ABOVE REFERRED TO
Duties of Manger
1. To manage, maintain and promote the business of the Company.
SIGNED by Roger Tan
For and on behalf of LUCKY INTERANTIONAL LTD
In the presence of
SIGNED by TERESA WONG
In the presence of
新加坡的通用合同分五部分：
第一部分：稱為parties，主要介紹合同各方的姓名或名稱，注冊地國及地址、郵編及各自在合同的簡稱。開頭框架一般為：
THIS AGREEMENT is made the ---------__________ day of _____ (month),____ (year) between A _______ (hereinafter called "The Company") of the part and B______, (hereinafter called "The Manager") of the other part.
句子開頭THIS AGREEMENT 或CONTRACT和當(dāng)事人的姓名和名稱，都應(yīng)大寫。當(dāng)事人是自然人的，用“of”和其后的住址相連;是法人或非法人單位的，用“having its registered office at”和其后注冊地址相連。
第二部分：稱為recital。以WHEREAS開頭，進(jìn)入敘述部分，用陳述正式說明當(dāng)事人訂立合同的原因。
第三部分：稱為habendum 具體約定當(dāng)事人的權(quán)利和義務(wù)。正文部分的結(jié)束段為：
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have set their hand the day and year first above written. 這段作用相當(dāng)于中文合同的“雙方簽字蓋章，特此為證”。
第四部分：稱為schedule或addendum，附錄。是對前述合同部分條款的必要補充。不是所有合同都有這一項。
第五部分：稱為attestation，證明部分。當(dāng)事人如果自然人，用“SIGNED by __”;連接后填寫見證姓名的表達(dá)部分“In the presence of ____”。