Section 2.5 All Provisions of Contract Must Be Given Effect When Possible

• Library: Contracts 2016 Supp

C. (§2.5) All Provisions of Contract Must Be Given Effect When Possible

Missouri courts will adopt an interpretation of a contract that
gives effect to all of the contract’s provisions when possible. “Each provision is construed in harmony with the others to give each provision a reasonable meaning and avoid an interpretation that renders some provisions useless or redundant.” Wildflower Cmty. Ass’n, Inc. v. Rinderknecht, 25 S.W.3d 530, 534 (Mo. App. W.D. 2000).

In Wildflower Community Ass’n, a homeowner built a driveway that ran through his neighborhood’s “common area.” Id. at 533. The community association filed suit, claiming that the homeowner did not have authority to build the driveway across the common area without the association’s consent. Id. The homeowner relied on language in the parties’ Declaration of Restrictions, Covenants, and Easements, which stated that “[e]very member shall have a right and easement to use and enjoyment in and to the common areas.” Id. at 535. The provision governing the use of common areas did not contain language prohibiting a homeowner from constructing a driveway. Id.

The court explained that a restrictive covenant is a private agreement and is subject to the same rules of interpretation as other contracts. Id. at 534 (citing Kling v. Taylor-Morley, Inc., 929 S.W.2d...