Contract

A voluntary agreement that transfers Ownership of something scarce from one agent to another, now or on a stated condition. A contract moves property; it does not bind the will. A promise by itself creates no obligation, however much another relied on it. Words, conduct, and the circumstances of a deal can all show that title moved, where that is what they mean; no form of words is required, and none is forbidden. A contract is enforceable because ownership has already passed: the thing now belongs to the receiver, and a holder who keeps it back commits Theft. Transfers may wait on a condition -- payment on delivery, a penalty on failure, collateral on default -- and the parties may set any condition they both consent to. Where the condition has not happened, no title has moved, and no one has a claim. Labor cannot transfer this way, because the will is inalienable under Self-Ownership. A contract for a Service therefore transfers money on performance, never the person; an agent who does not perform simply does not earn it.