Advertisements of any kind, including newspaper advertisements, catalogues, public announcements, brochures, etc., do not constitute an offer. Even if the advertisement includes the word 'offer', it cannot be considered a legal offer for anyone to enter contracts. This precisely answers the question, 'is an advertisement an offer?' Instead, these advertisements can be seen as an invitation given to the consumer to make a desirable offer to the advertiser.

Moreover, even the advertisements, including the list of published prices, do not happen to be an offer. This implies that the sellers will not have any obligation to sell any goods to you, even at the advertised prices. Also, it will not be considered a breach of any legal contract. However, the advertisements can be held liable for any wrongful messages they publish. Here are some details about how to offer advertisements of any kind that cannot be considered legal.

The Basics of Contract

For a contract to be enforced legally, the contract should show some attributes. Foremost, the contracts must portray that the two parties have agreed on the terms mentioned in the contract. This agreement should be mutual and should involve an effective exchange of something valuable. The two parties can reveal their agreement by demonstrating that they had an offer as well as acceptance. However, there is no formula about how these offers and contracts can be set, and the users can make use of any format they desire. However, none of these criteria is set in advertisements. This implies that offer advertisements cannot be termed as legal pieces in any court of law.

When Can Advertisements Be Legally Enforced?

3 elements need to be included in any advertisement to make it legally enforceable. These elements decide 'is an advertisement an offer?' These are:

• It should be communicated to either a particular person or a specific group of people.

• It should be definite and set in its terms.

• It should be clear to show the willingness of the advertiser to enter a kind of contract.

Also, the main factor that the court looks into is whether both parties wanted to take over the responsibility of getting into a legal contract. Thus, if an advertisement or a catalogue or a brochure meets these criteria, they can be considered an offer as per the law.

Some More Details on How Advertisements Can Become Legal Offers

Usually, the advertisements are considered to be just an invitation to initiate some negotiation between two parties. These two parties are a seller and a buyer. Thus, even detailed advertisements cannot be questioned in court as legal offers under any circumstances. However, there are some particular situations where these advertisements can be taken into consideration by the court.

• The court judges the advertiser's intent first, and this implies that the court will judge a person's reaction to the same piece of advertisement. If the court finds that a normal and reasonable person, after reading the agreement, thinks that the advertiser wants to form an agreement, it sees it as an offer.

• Another aspect that the court takes into consideration is the location of the advertisement being published. For example, an advertisement for a cow may not be considered seriously in a big city, but it may constitute a legal offer in rural areas.

• The third point is whether the party that has brought the lawsuit actually accepts the advertiser's offer. The said party would accept the offer when he or she does some action to fulfil his bargain as said in the advertisement. For example, there may be an advertisement to sell something to a firm. However, the firm asks you to register on their website to complete this offer. Thus, it cannot be legally entertained if you try to sell them anything without registering on their website.

Can an Advertiser Withdraw an Offer?

A legal offer is revocable to a point when the advertiser has received some form of benefit. If the second party has already taken action in response to the advertisement, the offer cannot be reversed. For example, if there is an advertisement that makes an offer to treat diabetes, it has received payment from the customers. Then, it cannot be reversed, and it will not be revocable under any circumstances.

Points That Make Advertisements Legal Offers

• If consumer protections points apply to an advertisement, it becomes a legal offer. For example, as per laws, there is a specific price at which the dealers can sell their cars, and thus, dealers cannot sell their cars above the advertised prices. In these cases, advertisements can become offers.

• The advertisements should not be creating any unnecessary warranties, even unintentionally. The reason being that warranties bring along a legal obligation to fulfil the terms as mentioned. If the warranty is created and does not meet the terms it states, it can be taken to court.

Final Words

Newspaper advertisements, catalogues, brochures do not qualify as legal offers under normal circumstances. However, there are some special situations where these advertisements can be considered legal pieces under the court of law. Thus, advertisers need to be extremely cautious when drafting these advertisements to face legal actions in this regard. Moreover, it is always advisable to have an experienced attorney on board when an advertisement is being drafted. The attorney would be able to seek solutions for any legal loopholes in the advertisements.

Author: Shradha Kabra