handshake deal
Trust-based business arrangement
A handshake deal is an informal agreement sealed by a handshake rather than a written contract.
It relies on mutual trust and personal honor rather than legal enforcement: We made a handshake deal on the property before the lawyers got involved.
The term often carries nostalgic overtones of simpler times when a person's word was binding.
- good faithSincere, honest intent
- gentleman's agreementInformal pact based on trust
- verbal agreementSpoken mutual commitment
- tacit understandingAgreement conveyed without words
- contractEnforceable written agreement
honor system · shake on it · trust · promise · integrity · implied consent · moral obligation · informal · unenforceable · reliability · verbal · off-the-books · under the table · loyalty · old school · unwritten · commitment · word of honor
- stock photosShutterstock, Getty Images, Getty, Canva, happy family
- unwritten agreementsverbal contract, oral agreement, gentleman's agreement, unwritten rule, mutual understanding
- negotiationbargaining, bargain, negotiate, mediation, compromise
- agreementscontract, nod, accords, verbal consent, agreement
- commitmentsvow, pledge, oath, vows, promise
- Negotiation Termsdeadlock, bargaining, negotiation, stalemate, compromise
handshake dealbinding contract
Enforceable legal agreement
written contract · formal contract · legal agreement · legal document · contractual agreement
deal, dealer, dealing, dealt, deals, handshake, dealership, handshakes, handshaking