Misrepresentation vs Mistake
A mistake is a very common occurrence in our daily lives and we tend to say sorry to others if our act of commission or omission caused any inconvenience to others. A mistake is taken as accidental error, though sometimes, especially in sports, players feel that the person committing mistakes again and again is doing them willfully. Misrepresentation on the other hand is mostly referred to in contracts where a person does not fully disclose all the facts so as to lure another party into the contract. This is also the case when a manufacturer does not tell the side effects of a product and merely harps on the benefits of the product so as to sell it in good numbers. There are other differences also between misrepresentation and mistake, which will be discussed in this article.
Sometimes the lines between a mistake and misrepresentation get blurred as when the person presenting the facts may not be in the know of true facts and may think of the facts presented by him to be correct and true. This is then an innocent misrepresentation and also a mistake on his part as he did not try to glean information from various sources. Thus an innocent misrepresentation is a mistake that can at best be termed as a felony and does not attract severe penalties. On the other hand, when misrepresentation is willful as when a person does not disclose all the facts only for monetary gains or to lure another party into signing a contract, it is considered more serious and calls for severe action against the person.
It is generally assumed that a person who is feeling sorry for his action must be pardoned for his mistake or error. On the other hand, misrepresentation, as it means hiding some information for monetary gains, is unpardonable as it may harm another person, either financially or physically.
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In brief: Mistake vs Misrepresentation • A mistake is inadvertent and only an error on the part of the person committing it while misrepresentation is often willful, done with the intention of gaining wrongfully. • Guilty party committing mistake is sorry for his act and is mostly pardoned as to err is to human but misrepresentation, when willful is more serious and attract provisions of law.
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