In “Our Word Is Our Bond,” Marianne Constable describes various ways in which the laws of the United States govern (or attempt to govern) the happenings of speech in today's world. In particular, Professor Constable examines the regulation of speech in the areas of contract law, criminal law, First Amendment law, civil and criminal procedure, evidence law, and torts. In this article, I will further explore law's struggle to govern speech or, more accurately, silence, in one area of contract law – misrepresentation – as illustrated by the seminal case Hill v. Jones.

Our Word Is Our Bond

According to Professor Constable, an agreement, like an oath, may not be considered valid unless certain requirements are met: “certain accepted conventional procedures that include the uttering of certain words must be met; the procedures must be carried out by the appropriate persons, correctly and completely, in the appropriate circumstances; and if particular feelings or thoughts are required, the parties must have those feelings and thoughts, and subsequently follow through with their conduct.” She notes that