What is the exam-ready distinction?
| Roadmap post | 197 of 500 |
|---|---|
| Official syllabus topic | Contracts: Validity and Enforceability |
| Official PSI area | Contracts |
| Published weight | 19% of the 100-question national portion |
| Source edition | PSI Georgia Candidate Information Bulletin dated July 1, 2026 |
| Content checked through | August 2, 2026 |
The Rule
PSI publishes a weight for the complete official area, not a guaranteed count for this individual comparison. Use the source, document, actor, event, and timing stated in the question before applying a memorized definition.
Side-by-side comparison
Read across each row. The terms are deliberately compared on identical dimensions so the difference remains clear when the exam hides the vocabulary inside a scenario.
| Decision dimension | Void | Voidable | Unenforceable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal status | No legal effect from the beginning | Valid unless the protected party rescinds or avoids it | May be valid but a court remedy is unavailable because of a defense |
| Who can act | No party can make the invalid bargain enforceable merely by preference | Party protected by the defect generally chooses | Party raising the enforcement defense |
| Example | Agreement for an illegal purpose | Contract induced by qualifying fraud or signed by a protected minor | Oral agreement within an applicable statute of frauds |
| Exam question | Did a legal contract exist? | Who may disaffirm? | Will a court enforce it? |
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. A competent adult induces the other party to sign through qualifying fraud, and the defrauded party has not yet rescinded.
Reason it through. Fraud can give the protected party the option to avoid a contract; it does not necessarily mean no contract ever existed.
Answer. The contract is voidable by the defrauded party.
Common exam traps
- Using void and voidable interchangeably
- Assuming only unsigned contracts are unenforceable
- Letting the wrong party disaffirm
- Treating a bad deal as legal invalidity
Original practice questions with detailed explanations
These are original instructional questions mapped to the July 1, 2026 PSI outline. They are not copied from PSI or any live examination. Choose an answer before opening the explanation.
Question 1Which contract remains effective unless a protected party elects to avoid it?
- A. A void contract
- B. A voidable contract
- C. Every unenforceable contract
- D. A fully executed deed
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: B. A voidable contract
A voidable contract is correct. A void contract has no legal effect from inception. A voidable contract is valid unless the party protected by the defect elects to avoid it. An unenforceable contract may otherwise be valid, but a legal defense prevents judicial enforcement. The exam tests status and remedy, not whether the bargain feels unfair. The rejected choices are A void contract; Every unenforceable contract; A fully executed deed. Each misses the legal category or controlling fact stated in the rule.
Question 2A competent adult induces the other party to sign through qualifying fraud, and the defrauded party has not yet rescinded.
- A. It is automatically void for everyone.
- B. It is fully performed because it was signed.
- C. The contract is voidable by the defrauded party.
- D. It is unenforceable only because the price was negotiated.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. The contract is voidable by the defrauded party.
Fraud can give the protected party the option to avoid a contract; it does not necessarily mean no contract ever existed. Therefore, The contract is voidable by the defrauded party. The other choices fail because they replace those controlling facts with a neighboring concept or an unsupported absolute rule.
Question 3What should a candidate identify first when comparing Void Versus Voidable Versus Unenforceable Contracts?
- A. The option with the longest definition, without classifying the facts.
- B. A memorized Georgia rule, even when the question asks for a national concept.
- C. The answer that sounds most favorable to the buyer, regardless of the document or event.
- D. Ask whether legal validity never arose, a protected party has a choice, or an enforcement defense blocks the court remedy.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: D. Ask whether legal validity never arose, a protected party has a choice, or an enforcement defense blocks the court remedy.
Ask whether legal validity never arose, a protected party has a choice, or an enforcement defense blocks the court remedy. That sequence identifies the legal category before the label. Choosing by definition length ignores the facts, importing a Georgia rule can answer the wrong jurisdictional question, and favoring one party substitutes sympathy for classification.
Mastery tracking
Mark this distinction mastered only when every statement is true.
- Define every compared term without using the other term as the definition.
- Rebuild the comparison table from memory.
- State the decision rule and Georgia distinction without notes.
- Solve the worked example after changing one controlling fact.
- Explain why every trap and distractor is tempting but wrong.
- Answer all three original questions correctly in mixed practice on a later day.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Executed Versus Executory Contract. Continue to roadmap comparison 198.
Return to the complete exam-concept library or the Contracts hub.