text: difference between social and legal contract?   the term "social contract" is metaphorical.  it does not refer to an actual piece of paper which specific parties signed and dated, which can be taken to court and enforced.  a legal contract is all that, for the most part.  it is possible to enforce an oral contract in law, but it is done by analogy to a written contract.  a social contract, in contrast, is not analogous.  it is a way to describe the idea of a committment between government and citizens, or between one group of people and another.  it is a metaphor only, and a judge has no jurisdiction over its enforcement.