When and how can a soldier void their contract?

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 21:19:01 -0500

when and how can a soldier void contract or can he??

Response by SGM Bill Frazer made Jan 21 at 2019 9:56 PM

SGM Bill Frazer — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 21:56:15 -0500

Lets see, Lawyers have reviewed , studied and changed contracts in the Army ever since Geo Washington was President. You have a better chance of winning the big lottery than you do voiding a contract.

Response by MSG Steve Wiersgalla made Jan 21 at 2019 9:57 PM

MSG Steve Wiersgalla — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 21:57:32 -0500

Why in the hell would you want to do that? You need to add way more details quickly.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 21 at 2019 10:35 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 22:35:43 -0500

Probably not the answer you’re looking for, but fail a few APFTs in a row. Go AWOL. Punch your commander. You’ll be out of the Army in no time.

Unfortunately, soldiers simply don’t have much luck in the area of, “this contract isn’t doing it for me for reasons XYZ. I’ll just void it.”

Response by CSM Darieus ZaGara made Jan 21 at 2019 10:49 PM

CSM Darieus ZaGara — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 22:49:32 -0500

If the service member has not gone to basic then there is a chance, other than that it is virtually impossible.

Response by CPT Ray Gilmore made Jan 21 at 2019 10:55 PM

CPT Ray Gilmore — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 22:55:22 -0500

You can void your contract a number of ways..... they are outlined in the UCMJ.... take your pick and your chain of command will gladly put you out of the service. Then, you can enjoy civilian life with a Dishonorable Discharge.

OR......Finish your term of service, and don't re-up.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 21 at 2019 11:51 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 23:51:21 -0500

You cannot void your contract unless your contract was defective, unfulfilled, fraudulent or erroneous, and the contract cannot be renegotiated.
Like any business contract, it is legally binding and one party can't choose to void a contract without the other party's consent. That's the whole point of a contract.

Response by SSG Brian G. made Jan 21 at 2019 11:59 PM

SSG Brian G. — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 23:59:04 -0500

You have a better chance of winning the lottery than you do of voiding a contract. However it can be done. But the member has to cross the t's and dot the i's and even then they have to rely on MEPS to have screwed up in some legal fashion which is rare.

Effectively if there is something in the contract that the military fails to contractually make good on then that is potentially legal grounds. Other than that there is literally no way to void a contract.

Now the SM can willfully screw up or fail to perform or simply not adjust to military life in which case they are chaptered out but that is not contract voiding.

Response by 1SG Flo Carrigan made Jan 22 at 2019 8:05 AM

1SG Flo Carrigan — Tue, 22 Jan 2019 08:05:19 -0500

Like the comments before mine....not an easy thing to do. Just remember, you do something crazy to get out....it will follow you the rest of your life. The DD214 issued with "Other Than Honorable" will be questioned, & many will not take into consideration that it was a " Young dumb move". Think clearly of all the issues you could face afterwards before doing anything.

Response by SPC Erich Guenther made Jan 22 at 2019 11:00 AM

SPC Erich Guenther — Tue, 22 Jan 2019 11:00:36 -0500

If you feel the Army has wronged you in some way via enlistment or the contract. There is an established appeal process via the ABCMR (Army Board for Correction of Military Records). They handle mistakes made at the MEPS, mistakes made by your local Chain of Command, mistakes made in what was promised to you and documented. They are the final authority and usually if the board rules in your favor on an issue the corrective memo is signed by a General Officer and amazingly nobody stands in it's way. The minor issue is they can also find mistakes NOT in your favor during their investigations (though rare). You have to abide by their authority either way and no retribution is taken against you for using this process (by Army Regs it is akin to using the Open Door Policy). They last had the submission form on the internet the last I looked and it is completely you doing the submission via self-service. They are the only authority I have seen that has ever offered a Soldier to back out of an enlistment contract and return back to civilian life as part of a settlement. I used ABCMR to correct my rank when the MEPS screwed up the rank for college credits calculation, they were very fair to me when I used them and issued a formal apology as well. They even backdated the rank and issued back pay.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 22 at 2019 2:48 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 22 Jan 2019 14:48:41 -0500

So this Soldier was promised something, right? Is it in their contract? Do they meet all stipulations of said incentive? If so and their unit is not helping then reach out to IG. However, if it's not in their contract, it's their fault for not reading it. Remember, we are all adults, not kids when we sign these contracts. If this Soldier was a 17 year old at the time of signing their contract then mommy and daddy should've evaluated the contract before letting junior go be a Soldier.

That said, I hate these obscure questions. Always lay out details so we are not guessing.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 22 at 2019 5:55 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 22 Jan 2019 17:55:55 -0500

Wha-huh???