Contracts I

Restatement Third of Restitution § 2

Restatement Third of Restitution § 2

Limiting Principles

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1. The fact that a recipient has obtained a benefit without paying for it does not of itself establish that the recipient has been unjustly enriched.
2. A valid contract defines the obligations of the parties as to matters within its scope, displacing to that extent any inquiry into unjust enrichment.
3. There is no liability in restitution for an unrequested benefit voluntarily conferred, unless the circumstances of the transaction justify the claimant's intervention in the absence of contract.
4. Liability in restitution may not subject an innocent recipient to a forced exchange: in other words, an obligation to pay for a benefit that the recipient should have been free to refuse.