Is a Purchase Order a Contract?

Per Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), a UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) purchase order (PO) is considered a contract by way of acceptance or fulfillment by both parties. The terms often found at the bottom of a vendor's quote are typically in conflict with the provisions in our standard University of California (UC) Terms and Conditions of Purchase. For this reason, it is important for UC faculty and staff to leave quotes unsigned.

Submitting the purchase order to the vendor while referencing their quote number fulfills the order under the UC terms of purchase.