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Agreement and Offer

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Contract by Tender

The request for tenders represents an invitation to treat and each tender submitted amounts to an offer unless the request specifies that it will accept the lowest or highest tender or other condition. If the request contains such a condition this will amount to an offer of a unilateral contract where acceptance takes place on performing the condition:

Spencer v. Harding Law Rep. 5 C. P. 561 Case summary

Auctions
Where an auction takes place with reserve, each bid is an offer which is then accepted by the auctioneer. Where the auction takes place without reserve, the auctioneer makes a unilateral offer which is accepted by the placing of the highest bid:

Heathcote Ball v Barry [2000] EWCA Civ 235 Case summary

Machines

The machine represents the offer, the acceptance is inserting the money:

Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking [1971] 2 WLR 585 Case summary

Termination of offers An offer may be terminated by:

1. Death of offeror or offeree

2. Lapse of time

An offer will terminate after a reasonable lapse of time. What amounts to a reasonable period will depend on the circumstances.

Ramsgate Victoria Hotel v Montefiore (1866) LR 1 Ex 109 Case summary

3. Revocation

An offeror may revoke an offer at any time before acceptance takes place:

Dickinson v Dodds (1876) 2 Ch. D. 463 Case summary

This may not apply in unilateral offers where acceptance requires full performance:

Errington v Errington Wood [1952] 1 KB 290 Case summary

Dahlia v Four Millbank [1978] Ch 231 Case summary

4. Counter offer

A counter offer is where an offeree responds to an offer by making an offer on different terms. This has the affect of destroying the original offer so that it is no longer open for the offeree to accept.

Hyde v Wrench (1840) 49 ER 132 Case summary

Acceptance

Once valid acceptance takes place a binding contract is formed. It is therefore important to know what constitutes a valid acceptance in order to establish if the parties are bound by the agreement. There are three main rules relating to acceptance:

1. The acceptance must be communicated to the offeree.
2. The terms of the acceptance must exactly match the terms of the offer.
3. The agreement must be certain.

1. Communication

The general rule is that the offeror must receive the acceptance before it is effective:

Entorres v Miles Far East [1955] 2 QB 327 Case summary

Silence will not amount to acceptance:

Felthouse v Bindley [1862] EWHC CP J35 Case summary

Acceptance can be through conduct:

Brogden v. Metropolitan Railway Co. (1877) 2 App. Cas. 666 Case summary

Butler Machine Tool v Ex-cell-o Corporation [1979] 1 WLR 401 Case summary

The postal rule

Where it is agreed that the parties will use the post as a means of communication the postal rule will apply. The postal rule states that where a letter is properly addressed and stamped the acceptance takes place when the letter is placed in the post box:

Adams v Lindsell (1818) 106 ER 250 Case summary

It is relatively easy for the parties to exclude the postal rule:

Holwell Securities v Hughes [1974] 1 WLR 155

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