Also known as: statute of frauds · statutes of frauds · statute of frauds and perjury · SOF
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A statutory rule requiring certain classes of contracts to be evidenced by a signed writing to be enforceable. The rule covers promises by executors, suretyship undertakings, contracts for the sale of land, leases exceeding a statutory period, and agreements not performable within one year.
Sasha Stone, as executor of her uncle's estate, orally promised a creditor that she would personally pay the decedent's unpaid medical bills if the estate funds proved insufficient. When the creditor later sued Stone individually after the estate was exhausted, the court dismissed the claim because no signed writing evidenced Stone's personal undertaking.
Selena Singh orally agreed to lease a warehouse to Seth Shapiro for three years at a fixed monthly rent. After Singh later refused to honor the deal, Shapiro sued for specific performance. The court held the lease unenforceable under the Statute of Frauds because its duration exceeded the one-year limit and no signed writing existed.
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Stonehaven Properties recorded a declaration imposing height restrictions on all lots in a new subdivision before selling any parcels. When a buyer later erected a taller structure, neighboring owners sought to enforce the restriction. The court upheld the servitude because the recorded declaration satisfied the writing requirement for creation of servitudes.
Sylvia Santos signed a document leasing retail space to Skylar Sullivan for two years at $4,000 monthly rent. The writing named both parties, described the premises by address, stated the duration and rent, and bore Santos's signature. When Santos later denied the lease, the court enforced it because the signed memorandum met every statutory element.
Santiago Sanchez orally leased a farm to Sterling Manufacturing for five years. After the company took possession and paid monthly rent for eighteen months, Sanchez sought to evict it. The court ruled that the invalid lease created only a month-to-month periodic tenancy because possession plus rent acceptance supplied the limited equitable relief available under the Statute of Frauds.
Southland Foods held a valid three-year written lease from Silverline Industries. The parties orally agreed to extend the term by two additional years. When Silverline later refused the extension, Southland sued. The court held the modification unenforceable because both the original term and the remaining period exceeded the Statute of Frauds threshold.
The rule applies to executor promises to answer for a decedent's duty, suretyship undertakings, contracts for the sale of land, leases longer than the statutory period, and agreements not performable within one year.
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The writing must identify the parties, identify the premises, specify the duration, state the rent, and be signed by the party to be charged.
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Possession alone creates a tenancy at will. Possession plus payment and acceptance of rent creates a periodic tenancy matching the lease terms except duration. Substantial performance clearly referable to the lease terms may give the lease full effect.
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An oral modification is invalid if both the original lease term and the remaining period after modification exceed the period specified in the controlling Statute of Frauds.
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…universally require that those instruments be in writing. There is no doubt that statutes requiring wills to be in writing, and statutes of frauds which require that a contract to make a will be in writing, on occasion frustrate the effectuation of the intent of a particular decedent, just as Missouri's requirement of proof in this…