Is it possible to revoke a contract as a result of a misunderstanding?

If the contract is concluded due to a material misunderstanding, the injured party has the right to request the people's court or arbitration institution to modify or revoke it.

Article 54 One of the parties shall have the right to request the people's court or arbitration institution to modify or revoke the following contracts:

1) It was concluded due to a major misunderstanding;

2) It is obviously unfair at the time of the conclusion of the contract.

If one party uses fraud, coercion or taking advantage of the danger of others to cause the other party to enter into a contract contrary to its true intentions, the injured party has the right to request the people's court or arbitration institution to modify or revoke it.

Where a party requests a modification, the people's court or arbitration institution must not revoke it.

A contract cannot be rescinded on the grounds of a material misunderstanding.

Reason: In order to prevent the parties to the contract from abusing the right of revocation, there is a clear judicial interpretation of the material misunderstanding. The so-called major misunderstanding, according to article 71 of the Opinions of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Implementation of the General Principles of the Civil Law of the People's Republic of China, refers to the conduct of the actor due to a misunderstanding of the nature of the act, the other party, the variety, quality, specification and quantity of the subject matter, etc., which makes the consequences of the act contrary to his own intentions and causes relatively large losses.

The situation you mentioned is not a major misunderstanding, nor does it cause significant damage.

Article 54 of the Contract Law provides that one of the following contracts shall have the right to request the people's court or arbitration institution to modify or revoke the following contracts.

1) It was concluded due to a major misunderstanding; 2) It is obviously unfair at the time of the conclusion of the contract. If one party uses fraud, coercion or taking advantage of the danger of others to cause the other party to conclude a contract contrary to its true intentions, the injured party has the right to request the people's court or arbitration institution to modify or revoke it.

The scope of voidable contracts should be limited to contracts with untrue intentions, mainly in the following three aspects: (1) contracts concluded due to material misunderstandings. The so-called "major misunderstanding" refers to where the actor has a wrong understanding of the nature of the act, the other party, the variety, quality, specification, quantity, and so forth of the conduct, causing the consequences of the conduct to be contrary to their true intentions and causing relatively large losses, it may be found to be a major misunderstanding. (2) It is obviously unfair at the time of entering into a contract According to China's judicial interpretation, obvious unfairness refers to a civil act in which one party takes advantage of an advantage or benefits the other party's inexperience, resulting in the rights and obligations of both parties clearly violating the principles of fairness, justice, and equivalent compensation.

3) A contract concluded by means of fraud or coercion or taking advantage of the danger of another person A contract concluded under the circumstances of fraud or coercion obviously violates the principle of voluntariness of China's civil law: a contract signed by one party claiming that the other party is in danger and forcing the other party to make an untrue expression of intent in order to seek improper benefits, which seriously damages the interests of the other party, is used to take advantage of the danger of others.

In the case of a standard contract, if there is ambiguity in the terms of the contract, an interpretation unfavorable to the provider of the standard contract shall be made.

Unfortunately, a general misunderstanding caused by insufficient relevant experience cannot be revoked as a material misunderstanding.

The contract shall be invalid under any of the following circumstances:

1) One party concludes a contract by means of fraud or coercion, harming the interests of the state;

2) Malicious collusion, harming the interests of the state, the collective, or a third party;

3) Concealing illegal purposes in a lawful form;

4) Harming the public interest;

5) Violating mandatory provisions of laws and administrative regulations.

A contract with a material misunderstanding can be revoked, what counts as a material misunderstanding?

A contract concluded as a result of a material misunderstanding may be rescinded. The actor may request the people's court or the arbitration mechanism to revoke the contract, but the party with a material misunderstanding needs to exercise the right of revocation within 90 days from the date on which the party knows or should know the reasons for revocation.

[Legal basis].

Article 147 of the Civil Code.

Where civil juristic acts are carried out on the basis of a major misunderstanding, the actor has the right to request that the people's court or arbitration institution revoke it.

Article 152.

In any of the following circumstances, the right of revocation shall be extinguished:

1) The party has not exercised the right of revocation within one year from the date on which the party knew or should have known the reasons for revocation, or within 90 days from the date on which the party with a major misunderstanding knew or should have known the reasons for revocation;

2) The party concerned is coerced and does not exercise the right of revocation within one year from the date of termination of the coercive act;

3) The parties expressly express or express their waiver of the right of revocation after knowing the reasons for revocation or by their own conduct.

Where a party has not exercised the right of revocation within five years from the date of occurrence of the civil juristic act, the right of revocation is extinguished.

Legal Analysis: General misunderstandings of contracts are resolved through contract interpretation and do not affect the validity of the contract. If a material misunderstanding is found, the contract can be rescinded. Although the law does not stipulate that such a contract can be changed, theoretically it is permissible for the parties to negotiate a perfect contract.

Legal basis: Article 147 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China: Where civil juristic acts are based on a major misunderstanding, the actor has the right to request that the people's court or arbitration institution revoke them.