What legal concept prevents a party from asserting a fact because another party relied on certain statements made by them?

The legal concept that prevents a party from asserting a fact because another party relied on certain statements made by them is known as estoppel. This principle is designed to safeguard individuals from being misled by the representations or conduct of others. When one party makes a statement or behaves in a way that another party reasonably relies upon, the first party may be barred from later claiming something contrary to their initial representation.

Estoppel is particularly important in various legal contexts, such as contract law and disputes involving representations. For example, if a landlord tells a tenant they can renew their lease under certain terms and the tenant relies on that statement to invest in renovations, the landlord may be estopped from later denying those terms.

In contrast, waiver typically refers to the voluntary relinquishment of a known right, negligence involves a failure to exercise reasonable care leading to harm, and contractual obligation pertains to legal duties specified in a contract. These concepts, while important, do not address the reliance on statements in the same way that estoppel does.