what is a bilateral contract 
a bilateral contract is an agreement between two parties in which each side agrees to fulfill their side of the bargain typically bilateral contracts involve an equal obligation or consideration from the offeror and the offeree although this need not always be the case in more complex situations such as multinational trade negotiations a bilateral contract can be a so called side deal that is both parties are involved in the general negotiations but may also see the need for a separate contract relevant only to their shared interests 