Dog price question - Page 4

My attorney agreed that it is in fact, not legally binding and would not hold up in court.  Of course I was ready to take it to court to get back what I consider MY dogs.  But according to both attorneys, it would be a waste of my time and money to try with that contract and a deceased owner who can't tell anyone that in fact she agreed to return the dogs to me if anything happened to her or she decided to give them up for any reason - .

molly

In an interesting side note, Ellen Degeneres got flak for giving away an adopted dog to her hairdresser that also had a return clause in the contract.  The attorney for the rescue organization was able to successfully take the dog away from the person she gave it to. 

Untested, but if these contingency contracts are not enforceable then clauses that dictate spay/neuter after sale, or other things like that would all not be enforceable..having practiced for 20 plus years, I disagree with those that think it is not.  No one forces the buyer to agree to said terms.  They can simply buy/adopt elsewhere.  I could be wrong, and I would bet different judges in various jurisdictions might rule differently. 

No case that I know have specifically held it UNenforceable and several lower courts HAVE enforced.   It helps to have liquid damages and specific terms regarding price.

I remember that whole Ellen DeGeneres thing! That was awful. I remember how upset she was b/c the dog was placed in an excellent home and they took it away b/c of the contract.

Here is another link to an attorney authored site regarding dog sales contracts.  http://lawfordogs.com/assets/PDFs/Dog_Breeders.pdf

I think where problems occur with these contracts is that so many, unbeknownst to the breeder, are poorly written due to the language being vague. These will very often, not hold up in court.
In Molly's case, if she were dealing with the person that bought the dogs, a judge may (or may not) go a little further and look in to what the intent of the parties was at the time of the contract and each person's understanding of the contract. Because Molly is dealing with those left behind to clear up the affairs of the deceased dog purchaser, a judge will only look at the contract verbatim.  
Gildaf, it is good that you are having your contract looked at by an attorney because, if the snippet posted earlier is a part of your contract, it does not hold much water. 
99% of the time it is never an issue because usually there is no issue.
The other 1% of the time, when an issue does arise, is where a carefully written contract will and does hold up in court.

If you are a breeder, tell your attorney specifically what you want written in the contract. When your attorney hands you a copy of the contract go over it line by line and make sure it is exactly what you want. Most attorneys do not understand the intricacies that can be involved in these sales and will write a basic contract that does not cover as much as you may think or want.