Origin 1877, Hughes v Metropolitan Railway Co.; revived 1947 in Central London Property Trust Ltd v High Trees House Ltd; restated 1932 in the Restatement of Contracts section 90.
Promissory estoppel is a doctrine of contract law that allows a promise to be enforced even without the formal consideration ordinarily required to form a binding contract, where the promisee has reasonably and detrimentally relied on the promise. First articulated in English law in Hughes v Metropolitan Railway Co. (1877), it was largely dormant until Lord Denning revived it in Central London Property Trust Ltd v High Trees House Ltd (1947); in the United States it is generally stated, per the Restatement (Second) of Contracts section 90, as binding where a promise is one the promisor should reasonably expect to induce action or forbearance of a definite and substantial character. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Origin Period1877, Hughes v Metropolitan Railway Co.; revived 1947 in Central London Property Trust Ltd v High Trees House Ltd; restated 1932 in the Restatement of Contracts section 90. 1 Core PrincipleA promise the promisor should reasonably expect to induce action or forbearance of a definite and substantial character on the part of the promisee, and which does induce such action or forbearance, is binding if injustice can be avoided only by enforcement of the promise. 1 Origin Period
Origin Period (category)19th Century (1800-1899) 1 Classification
Doctrine Category Connections
Associated With
Promissory Estoppel is the recognized common-law exception that can enforce a promise made without consideration.
In Area Of Law
Entity-backed identity for the doctrine category value this doctrine already carries as an enum fact, resolved to a doctrine entity by an explicit value-to-entity map (phase 3 bucket conversion, docs\design_entity_backed_browse_buckets_20260928.md). The enum fact itself stays on the entity unchanged.
In Legal System
Source Promissory Estoppel (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Promissory Estoppel (Wikipedia)
WikipediaOrigin section, quoting Restatement (Second) of Contracts section 90
A promise which the promisor should reasonably expect to induce action or forbearance of a definite and substantial character on the part of the promisee and which does induce such action or forbearance is binding if injustice can be avoided only by enforcement of the promise.
- In Legal System: Common Law
View the Source 2. Wikipedia: Estoppel
Promissory and proprietary estoppel are specific forms of estoppel reflecting distinct legal traditionsView the Source Estoppel (Wikipedia)
WikipediaIn Group: Contract Formation and Consideration Doctrines, Promissory and proprietary estoppel are specific forms of estoppelView the Source Frequently Asked Questions
Can a promise be enforced even without consideration?
Yes, where the promisee reasonably and detrimentally relied on the promise.
Under promissory estoppel, yes, in certain cases. The doctrine allows a promise to be enforced without the formal consideration ordinarily required for a binding contract, where the promisee reasonably and detrimentally relied on it. It was first articulated in English law in Hughes v Metropolitan Railway Co. in 1877 and revived by Lord Denning in Central London Property Trust Ltd v High Trees House Ltd in 1947. In the United States, Restatement (Second) of Contracts section 90 binds a promise the promisor should reasonably expect to induce action or forbearance of a definite and substantial character on the part of the promisee.
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