A young woman is a recent college graduate working at a country club making 45k per year in a southern state.
She's saddled with student loans but getting by just fine.
She meets a rich dude who takes her under his wing and becomes her mentor.
He likes her and thinks she's smart.
Nothing going on between them mind you...but he never had kids and feels like she is what his daughter would be like.
He tells her she should go to law school and she says she can't because she can't afford it.
He tells her that if she gets into a good school...he'll pay for it.
She gets into a school which costs $55k per year and he writes out the check for $55k and pays for it.
She quits her fulltime job at the country club, works her azz off and does well in school.
Second year is getting geared up and suddenly old dude isn't returning her calls.
She shows up to his office and he tells her that the economy took a downturn and that he's taken a hit financially which made him decide his promise to her was unreasonable.
He's still rich.
Very rich.
She's pissed because going to law school wasn't even on her radar until old dude made the promise.
Now she has two more years to pay for at $55k.
Do YOU think she has a case if she decides to sue old dude for not following through with his promise?
Why or why not?
*LEGAL DEFINITION OF A PROMISE:
A written or oral declaration given in exchange for something of value that binds the maker to do, or forbear from, a certain specific act and gives to the person to whom the declaration is made the right to expect and enforce performance or forbearance. An undertaking that something will or will not occur. It is a manifestation of intent to act, or refrain from acting, in a certain manner.
In the law of Commercial Paper, an undertaking to pay. It must be more than an acknowledgment of an obligation.
The person who makes the declaration is the promisor. The person to whom the declaration is made is called the promisee.
In contracts, a promise is essential to a binding legal agreement and is given in exchange for consideration, which is the inducement to enter into a promise. A promise is illusory when the promisor does not bind herself to do anything and, therefore, furnishes no consideration for a valid contract.
A promise implied in fact is a tacit promise that can be inferred from expressions or acts of the promisor. A promise implied by law can arise when no express declaration is made, but the party, in Equity and justice, is under a legal duty as if he had in fact actually made a promise.
