Unconscionability is a defense against the enforcement of a contract or portion of a contract. If a contract is unfair or oppressive to one party in a way that suggests abuses during its formation, a court may find it unconscionable and refuse to enforce it.
There are two types of unconscionability in contracts, procedural and substantive.
Unconscionable is an adjective that means without a conscience; unscrupulous; so unfair or unjust that it shocks the conscience. The adjective is frequently used in the context of contract law for contracts that have grossly oppressive and unfair terms.
See: naked option.
[Last reviewed in July of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]
An undersecured debt is a debt secured by collateral with a lower value than the total amount of the claim.
To underwrite can refer to one of many different kinds of financial risk taking in exchange for a fee. Broadly, underwrite means agreeing to some form of financial investment with the possibility of profits or losses. A few examples of underwriting include loans, insurance, and securities.
An underwriter is an institutional financial organization that assesses and assumes another party’s risk for a fee. Underwriters operate in the context of (1) securities offerings and (2) insurance.
Underwriting is the act of assuming a risk by insuring it, such as insuring life or property, or by agreeing to buy all or part of a new issuance of securities to be offered for public
Under agency law, undisclosed principals arise when a third party has no notice that the principal exists, but the undisclosed principal has authorized an agent to act on the principal’s behalf. The agent does not represent that they are forming the contract on a principal’s behalf to the third party.
In contract law, undue influence is a defense used to argue against the formation of a binding contract.
