Yes, in most cases it is. Under Estonian law a contract can be made in any form — verbally, by e-mail, by text message or with a handshake — unless the law requires a specific form. The weakness of a verbal agreement is not its validity but proving it: in a dispute you have to be able to show what you agreed on.

What the law says

The starting point of the General Part of the Civil Code Act and the Law of Obligations Act is freedom of form. If two people agree that one does a job and the other pays for it, the contract comes into being the moment both have agreed to it. No paper or signature is needed for that.

This means a verbal agreement is as binding as a written one. If you promised to pay a repairman and he did the work, you have to pay even if nothing was written down.

When a verbal agreement is not enough

For some transactions the law requires a specific form. If it is not followed, the transaction is void — it is not valid even if both parties wanted it.

Notarisation is required, for example, for:

  • selling or gifting an immovable (a house, a flat, a plot of land);
  • transferring a share in a private limited company, unless the articles of association allow otherwise;
  • a marital property agreement;
  • an inheritance agreement.

The law requires written form, for example, when a private person becomes a surety for someone else's debt. In that case the contract must also state the amount up to which the surety is liable.

The Employment Contracts Act requires an employment contract to be in writing. But if a person is already working for pay, the lack of a written contract does not make the employment relationship disappear — only the document is missing, and the employer is responsible for that.

The real problem is proof

A verbal agreement holds as long as both sides understand it the same way. The problem arises when, at some point, one side remembers it differently.

A typical example: you agree verbally with a repairman to renovate your bathroom "for about two thousand euros". During the work extra jobs turn up, the final bill is three thousand, and neither of you remembers exactly what was said at the start. In court the person making the claim has to prove it, and "that's what we agreed" carries little weight without other evidence.

The same often happens when you lend a friend money. A bank transfer shows that money moved, but not whether it was a loan or a gift and when it had to be paid back.

What counts as evidence

In a dispute a verbal agreement can be proved in several ways:

  • e-mails and messages that mention the agreement;
  • bank transfers with an explanation;
  • invoices and quotes;
  • witnesses who were present when the agreement was made;
  • the parties' conduct — for example, one party started performing the contract and the other accepted it.

The more such traces there are, the easier it is to show what was agreed.

How to put a verbal agreement in writing afterwards

If you agree on something on the phone or in person, send a short confirming e-mail or message right afterwards. For example:

  1. What will be done or handed over.
  2. What the price is and when it is paid.
  3. What the deadline is.
  4. What happens if something changes.

Ask the other party to reply that the summary is correct. Even a short "Yes, fine" makes a later dispute much easier, because the content of the agreement is now in writing with both sides' confirmation.

If the other party denies the agreement

If the other party says your agreement was different or never existed, act step by step:

  1. Gather the evidence. Find every message, e-mail, transfer and invoice related to the agreement. Also write down who was present and what they heard.
  2. Send a written demand. Describe what you believe you agreed on, what you are demanding and by what deadline. Keep a calm and specific tone — this letter may later reach a judge.
  3. Offer a solution. It is often quicker and cheaper to agree on a compromise than to argue for months.
  4. Only then go to court. If nothing else helps, you can go to court. The court weighs all the evidence together, and a verbal agreement can win the dispute if other traces support it.

Written form, e-mail and digital signature

In the law the forms have a specific meaning and are worth telling apart:

  • Written form means a document signed by hand. A digital signature is equivalent to it.
  • A form that can be reproduced in writing is, for example, an e-mail or a message — text that can be shown again later but has no signature.

If the law requires written form, an e-mail is not enough. If a form that can be reproduced in writing is enough, an e-mail will do.

When it makes sense to make a contract straight away

A verbal agreement suits small matters that are over quickly. A written contract is worth making whenever:

  • the amount is one whose loss would really affect you;
  • the work or cooperation lasts weeks or months;
  • one party pays in advance;
  • the work is done in your home or on your property;
  • you are lending money.

A written contract is not made because you don't trust the other party. It records what you both understand the same way now, so that half a year later nobody has to reconstruct it from memory.