Missouri Consumers--Beware of contract terms entered into on the internet!
A recent Missouri Court of Appeals decision reminds us that contracts entered into over the internet may bind us to certain terms and conditions in the same manner as if signing a paper contract. In a appeal from a Greene County Missouri Circuit Court, the Southern District held that the website terms which included liability limitations and disclaimers, a Colorado choice of law provision and a forum selection clause limited to Denver County, Colorado, was enforceable. Major v. McCallister and Kalupto Creations, LLC and ServiceMagic, Inc., Case No. SD29871, (Mo. App. S.D. Dec. 23, 2009).
Appellant Major used ServiceMagic's website, which offered free referrals to prescreened construction contractors, to search for someone to remodel her Springfield, Missouri home. The website process involved a series of computer screens or web pages, each hyperlinked to ServiceMagic's terms and conditions. Although Major did not read the terms, she continued through the website and clicked the "submit for matching pros" button. That button was next to a notice that stated "By submitting you agree to the Terms of Use."
When Major became dissatisfied with the contractors hired through the website, she filed suit against them in Greene County, Missouri. Both the Circuit Court and the Court of Appeals held that Major was bound by the terms of the contract which required any lawsuit to be brought in Colorado--Not Missouri. "Failure to read an enforceable online agreement, as with any binding contract, will not excuse compliance with its terms." Id.
