Symbolic agreement
The contract you create here is a symbolic agreement between the parties, and it is not legally binding. This page explains what that means, and what the law applies regardless of what the contract says.
1. The agreement is symbolic
An agreement is legally binding when the law lets one party demand that it is followed, for example by going to court. This contract is not that.
Nobody can use it to demand that the other person does, accepts or refrains from anything.
The contract is an agreement between the two of you: a way of reaching an understanding, writing down expectations and having something to return to when you review it. How much it means depends on both of you wanting to keep it.
2. Consent can always be withdrawn
Consent means saying yes to something. Under the law you can take a yes back at any time, including in the middle of a situation.
No agreement can take away your right to say no or stop.
This applies regardless of what the contract says. If you have chosen that consent cannot be withdrawn, or removed the right to end the agreement, that only describes what you want as a symbolic arrangement. The choice has no effect under the law.
3. Consent does not remove criminal liability
Criminal liability means that a person can be punished by the police and the courts, for example with a fine or imprisonment.
A yes, including a written yes in a contract, does not make an act lawful if it causes harm.
Some acts can be criminal even if both people said yes in advance. This applies in particular to acts that can cause serious or lasting injury, and to acts against a person who is unable to say no, for example because they are asleep or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The person who carries out the act can be held responsible. The same applies to images and recordings: showing or sharing intimate images without the consent of the person pictured can be a criminal offence.
If you are unsure whether something is lawful, get advice from a lawyer.
4. What in the contract is symbolic?
The whole contract is meant as an agreement between the two of you, not as something that can be enforced in court. This applies in particular to:
- titles and forms of address
- rules and routines
- punishments and consequences
- finances, for example who pays for what or approves purchases
- access, for example to phone, accounts, location or who you may contact
These are wishes and arrangements between the parties, without legal force.
Breaking them does not give grounds for a claim in court.
That does not mean the agreement is worthless to you. It shows what you have agreed, and either of you can withdraw consent and end it at any time.