Consideration

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Consideration is an essential contract element that means the parties have negotiated for, and are exchanging, something of value.

• Every contract must be supported by consideration
• Consideration is reciprocal
• courts do not usually review the value of the consideration
  • left to the parties to determine sufficiency for their deals
• there is no consideration when value is given for a service that a person has already performed
  • called prior consideration
• there is no consideration when a person is already required to do something because of a preexisting obligation