Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Re: Tape recording a contract, hold up in court?

I am afraid I have to disagree with Mr. Pavone's conclusion, although much of his analysis is perfectly correct. An oral contract is often enforceable (although the Statute of Frauds precludes enforcement of oral contracts for transfers of real estate, for services that will necessarily take more than one year to perform, and a few others) as long as they can be proven, but they still must satisfy all the requirements of a contract -- e.g., each side must provide consideration, there must not be an excuse for performance, the side seeking to enforce must have performed, the terms must be sufficiently clear, etc. (These are oversimplifications, but I hope you get the idea.)

Having a recording is very helpful here, as it clarifies the terms of the agreement and, hopefully, includes clear evidence of agreement to the terms. Be careful, though, because recording phone conversations is illegal unless all parties consent to the recording. If their consent is not clear from the tape and if they deny consenting, you will have to prove that they agreed. If you can't prove this, the tape will be inadmissible in court and you could face criminal liability depending on the specifics.

The problem in your situation seems to be that your "contract" may be void due to illegal subject matter. You describe the agreement as a "bet" which the other party "lost." Wagering is not legal in California, and a contract for a wager will not be enforceable.

Maybe you just phrased your question badly, but if it really is a bet you are trying to enforce, you will probably get no sympathy from the courts.

The word "bet" was sort of buried in your question, and Mr. Pavone probably didn't catch it before he prepared his answer. As I said before, his analysis is quite correct but for this significant issue.

Re: Tape recording a contract, hold up in court?

A verbal contract is an enforceable contract. The usual difficulty is proving that the conversation occurred but since you have it on tape, you are in good shape. Get a court reporter to transcribe the tape and you have a valid contract with good proof.