Section 11 Indian Contract Act 1872 - Who Is Competent to Contract
Section 11 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 lays down the basic legal capacity required for a person to enter into a contract. A contracting person must have attained the applicable age of majority, must be of sound mind for contracting, and must not be disqualified from contracting by a law applicable to that person.
Updated: 20 September 2026
Text and meaning of Section 11
Every person is competent to contract who is of the age of majority according to the law to which he is subject, and who is of sound mind, and is not disqualified from contracting by any law to which he is subject.
Section 11 should be read with Section 10, which requires parties to be competent to contract, and with Section 12, which explains soundness of mind for the purpose of contracting.
Three requirements for competency to contract
| Requirement | Legal meaning |
|---|---|
| Age of majority | The person must have attained majority under the law applicable to that person. For persons domiciled in India, Section 3 of the Majority Act, 1875 generally fixes majority at completion of 18 years. |
| Sound mind | Under Section 12, a person must be capable, at the time of making the contract, of understanding it and forming a rational judgment about its effect on that person's interests. |
| No legal disqualification | The person must not be prohibited or disqualified from contracting by another applicable law. The nature and extent of any disqualification depend on the particular statute and transaction involved. |
Age of majority and contracts with minors
Section 3 of the Majority Act, 1875 provides that every person domiciled in India attains majority on completing 18 years and not before. The Act also contains savings for specified matters, so the applicable law and nature of the transaction should always be checked.
A person who has not attained the applicable age of majority is not competent to contract under Section 11. Indian courts have long treated an agreement entered into by a minor in the minor's own capacity as void. The Supreme Court has continued to refer to the rule associated with Mohori Bibee v. Dharmodas Ghose when considering contractual incapacity of minors.
Sound mind for contracting
Section 12 of the Indian Contract Act focuses on the person's capacity at the time the contract is made. The relevant question is whether the person can understand the contract and form a rational judgment about its effect upon his or her interests at that time.
Disqualified from contracting by law
The third limb of Section 11 recognises that a person may otherwise be an adult and of sound mind but may still face a statutory or legal restriction concerning a particular contract. Whether such a restriction exists must be determined from the law governing that person and the transaction. Section 11 therefore operates together with other applicable statutes rather than as a complete list of every possible legal disqualification.
Related provisions of the Indian Contract Act
For a complete understanding of contractual capacity and consent, also see Section 10 - What agreements are contracts, Section 12 - Sound mind for contracting, Section 13 - Consent and Section 14 - Free consent.