agreement
the statement (oral or written) of an exchange of promises
Research draft, second pass
A second pass drafted this model: the structure a model of this thing needs, and what is known about it in the world. The line under this one says how the second half was obtained - researched against sources, or recalled without web access, in which case nothing here was read anywhere and every claim is a lead to verify. Unreviewed either way.
recalled by Codex without web access - no source was read
Researched by: Codex
Purpose and description
Enable an agent to recognise a statement of exchanged promises, assess what the parties have agreed, and identify supported next actions without assuming legal enforceability.
An agreement, in this sense, is an oral or written statement expressing two or more parties' mutual commitments in an exchange of promises.
It can be Extract and compare the promises exchanged, retaining links to their wording and evidence.; Identify missing assent, inconsistent versions, and ambiguous terms for clarification.; Locate the expression and amendments supported as applicable to a particular party and time.; Evaluate whether recorded conditions support a proposed next action, while exposing unknowns.; Prepare a proposed amendment or request for clarification without representing it as already agreed.; Trace a disputed interpretation or status claim to the relevant terms and supporting records..
Distinguishing features
Identify promises attributed to at least two parties and a connection presenting them as an exchange; matching opinions alone do not qualify.
Distinguish an agreement from a proposal by identifying evidence that the relevant parties assented to the same terms.
Distinguish the agreement from its carrier: several documents or a record of an oral exchange may express one agreement.
Treat signatures as evidence to interpret, rather than as a universal requirement or proof that every term was accepted.
Do not equate agreement with enforceable contract; record legal classification separately when supported.
Scope
+ Identification of the promises exchanged and how they relate to one another
+ Parties, their stated roles, and evidence connecting them to the agreement
+ Terms, conditions, exceptions, and incorporated material
+ Oral and written expressions of the agreement and evidence of assent
+ Agreed changes, effective periods, and stated routes for ending the agreement
- Consensus or shared opinion without an exchange of promises
- Standalone unilateral promises without a corresponding promise
- Negotiation activity and proposals that have not received attributable assent
- The complete legal analysis of whether an agreement forms an enforceable contract
- Execution of the promised activities, deliveries, or payments
- Physical documents, recordings, and digital files as carrier objects
Characteristics
- Agreement parties
- Links to persons or organisations, with stated roles and attribution evidence Establishes whose promises and assent the statement records.
- Promise exchange
- Links between promisor, promise recipient, promised outcome or conduct, and corresponding promises Captures the exchange that distinguishes this registry sense of agreement.
- Term definiteness
- Specified; partly specified; ambiguous; disputed; unknown, assessed per term Shows where an agent can interpret instructions directly and where clarification is needed.
- Assent status
- Evidenced; partial; disputed; not evidenced; unknown, assessed per party and version Prevents acceptance of one version from being attributed to another.
- Expression form
- Oral; written; mixed Determines which evidence can substantiate the statement and its wording.
- Effective interval
- Start and end timestamps or dates, with precision, timezone where relevant, and event conditions Distinguishes the time of assent from the period during which terms are stated to apply.
- Conditional dependencies
- Links from promises to triggering events, prerequisites, exceptions, and dependent promises Helps determine when a promised action is due or remains conditional.
- Expression fidelity
- Direct record; transcript; attested account; paraphrase; disputed reconstruction; unknown Separates the agreement's wording from later accounts of it.
- Lifecycle status
- Not yet effective; in effect; suspended; ended; superseded; disputed; unknown, with supporting evidence Supports decisions about which terms currently apply without treating unsupported status labels as facts.
- Enforceability assessment
- Optional link to a scoped legal assessment, including jurisdiction, date, and assessor Keeps evidence of agreement distinct from conclusions about legal consequences.
Analytical facets
- substance
- information
- origin
- conceptual
- agency
- inert
- mobility
- not-applicable
- scale
- not-applicable
- affordances
- readable
Also called
+44
Where this came from
oewn:2024 · CC BY 4.0
Drafted structure
Bundle to layer to finding to question, as the second pass will find it: 6 bundles · 11 layers · 15 findings · 26 questions.
Exchange of promises Identifies what each party promises and how those promises constitute an exchange.
The registry definition requires an exchange of promises, rather than agreement in the sense of matching views.
Promised conduct and outcomes
Separates commitments from aspirations, descriptions, and background statements.
Promise content
Record each asserted promise with its promisor, recipient, object, and supporting words; preserve uncertainty about whether wording expresses a commitment.
- What conduct, restraint, delivery, or outcome does each party undertake? definition
- Which words distinguish each undertaking from an intention, prediction, or recital? boundary
Reciprocal relationships
Connects promises without assuming that every party promises the same thing or exchanges directly with every other party.
Exchange structure
Identify which promises are presented as corresponding undertakings and whether the exchange is bilateral or involves several parties.
- Which promises are stated to be exchanged for which other promises? definition
- Does the statement establish an exchange, or only a unilateral promise or shared opinion? boundary
Parties and assent Attributes commitments and acceptance to the relevant parties and terms.
An agent must distinguish an agreed statement from a proposal, an unauthorised representation, or incompatible understandings.
Party attribution
Distinguishes parties from signers, speakers, witnesses, representatives, and beneficiaries.
Capacity and representation
Record who speaks or signs for whom and what evidence supports the claimed representative role, without inferring authority from a title alone.
- Who is a party, and who appears only as a representative, witness, or beneficiary? boundary
- What evidence connects each speaker or signer to the party whose promise they express? provenance
Assent to terms
Associates acceptance evidence with the particular wording and qualifications accepted.
Shared accepted content
Track evidence of assent per party and version, including reservations or conflicting accounts that prevent a confident conclusion about shared terms.
- What evidence shows each party accepted this particular expression of the promises? provenance
- Which reservations, counterproposals, or version differences require clarification before treating the terms as shared? action
Terms and conditions Makes the promised exchange interpretable in its stated circumstances.
Knowing that promises were exchanged is insufficient to decide what is due, when it is due, and which exceptions apply.
Performance criteria
Identifies the stated standards, quantities, recipients, timing, and locations relevant to each promise.
Determinate undertakings
Preserve explicit criteria for satisfying a promise and flag omissions instead of supplying unstated requirements.
- What quantities, deadlines, quality criteria, or acceptance procedures are specified for each undertaking? measurement
- Which missing or ambiguous criteria prevent an agent from determining the requested performance? action
Dependencies and incorporation
Captures conditions, exceptions, and references that qualify the apparent meaning of a promise.
Conditional and referenced terms
Link each qualifying condition or incorporated passage to the promise it affects, retaining any stated precedence rules.
- Which events, prior performances, or exceptions change when or whether a promise is to be performed? definition
- Which external terms and versions are incorporated, and what wording establishes their role or precedence? provenance
Expressions and evidence Connects the agreement to oral and written expressions while preserving differences between wording and accounts of wording.
An agreement can be represented in several carriers and records whose completeness or fidelity differs.
Agreement expression identity
Distinguishes the agreement from copies, translations, summaries, transcripts, and distributed statements.
Expression relationships
Record how expressions relate to one agreement and whether any expression is designated as controlling by the parties.
- Which documents or oral statements jointly express this agreement, and which merely describe it? boundary
- What evidence establishes that a copy, translation, or transcript represents the same agreed content? provenance
Evidential fidelity
Preserves the basis and limitations of claims about what was said or written.
Wording and reconstruction
Separate directly recorded wording from recollection, paraphrase, and disputed reconstruction, especially for oral agreements.
- Who recorded or reported the statement, when, and through what method? provenance
- Which passages are missing, reconstructed, or contested, and how do those gaps affect interpretation? boundary
Continuity and permitted actions Tracks changes to the agreed statement and the evidence needed to act on its current status.
Agents must avoid treating proposed changes, elapsed dates, or reports of performance as sufficient proof of the agreement's present effect.
Effective terms and revisions
Relates formation, effectiveness, amendments, and replacement without collapsing their distinct dates or evidence.
Applicable term history
Track which accepted changes affect which promises, parties, and periods, keeping proposed amendments distinct from supported changes.
- When do the original terms and each accepted amendment state that they take effect? measurement
- What evidence supports treating a proposed amendment as accepted and applicable to the parties concerned? provenance
Completion, exit, and dispute
Connects reported performance and stated exit procedures to agreement status and possible next actions.
Status and action basis
Record supported claims about completion, suspension, termination, or dispute and identify terms that are stated to continue afterward.
- Which promises are reported as fulfilled, outstanding, or disputed, and what evidence supports those reports? provenance
- What agreed procedure and separate agent authorisation support a proposed notice, amendment, suspension, or termination action? action
- Which terms are stated to continue after completion or termination, and which consequences need an external legal assessment? boundary
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
A model that cannot be lined up against existing standards, identifiers and practice cannot be adopted by anyone who already uses them.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Check these first
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- This description covers the statement of exchanged promises, not agreement as shared opinion, the act of reaching consensus, or grammatical agreement.
- No universal identifier scheme or quantitative measurement is asserted for this general sense.
- Any claims about enforceability, required form, signatures or evidential status require research for the relevant jurisdiction and agreement type.
- Which of these check these first hold for the sense of agreement this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Kinds and varieties
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Oral agreement
- Written agreement
- Bilateral agreement
- Multilateral agreement
- Conditional agreement
- Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of agreement this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Real-world use
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Recording reciprocal commitments about goods, services, payments or access.
- Coordinating responsibilities and expected performance among participants.
- Providing a shared reference for checking whether promises have been fulfilled.
- Communicating agreed changes to an existing arrangement.
- Preserving evidence of what participants promised.
- Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of agreement this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Failure modes and hazards
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Ambiguous wording permits incompatible interpretations of the promises.
- Missing conditions, deadlines or responsibilities leave performance expectations unclear.
- Different copies or recollections represent conflicting versions of the agreement.
- The statement attributes commitments to a party who did not assent to them.
- Readers mistake the existence of an agreement statement for proof of enforceability or completed performance.
- Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of agreement this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- promise - A promise expresses a commitment by a promisor; this sense of agreement expresses an exchange of promises among parties.
- contract - Contract concerns legally enforceable obligations; the specified agreement sense identifies the statement of mutual promises without establishing enforceability.
- assent - Assent is acceptance or concurrence; an agreement statement expresses the commitments to which parties assent.
- negotiation - Negotiation is the process of discussing proposed terms; an agreement statement expresses terms accepted by the parties.
- agreement document - An agreement document is a recorded embodiment of the statement; the same statement can appear in multiple documents or be expressed orally.
- performance - Performance is carrying out a promised action; the agreement states the commitment to perform it.
- Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of agreement this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
What the second pass must settle
- Does the registry intend to include agreements evidenced entirely by conduct, given its explicit definition as an oral or written statement?
- How should this entry link to any existing world model of agreement or contract so that the catalogue retains one source of truth per concept?
- What criterion should determine whether an amendment or restatement continues the same agreement or creates a replacement agreement?
- How should partially shared terms be represented when parties agree that an exchange exists but dispute its precise content?
- Which domain-specific sources are needed to assess assent, representative authority, and enforceability without imposing one legal regime on informal or cross-border agreements?