...QUESTION 1 Jean and her mother have formed an agreement which must meet the six prerequisites for a valid contract before we can determine if Jean can claim a breach of contract. (1. p291) From the information provided, I do not believe that there is a valid contract or that Jean can claim breach of contract. For a contract to be formed, it must meet all of the six prerequisites for a valid contract. The first requirement is ‘Intention to create legal relations’. As noted by Latimer, agreements between parents and children “do not usually give rise to contracts”. (1. p353, ¶5-520) For legal relations to be established, we would need to undertake an objective assessment regarding the agreement. If there is a precedent of Jean’s mother offering and paying money to Jean for completing work around the house or if Jean works in her own business as a Domestic Engineer, then this may be taken into consideration when determining the intentions of both parties. A reasonable person may accept that parents and children make exaggerated statements when trying to achieve a desired outcome – for example, a child may offer a parent $1M if they take them to the circus. Was the statement by Jean’s mother mere puffery? If it was determined that there was an intention to create legal relations, we would then need to ascertain if the remaining requirements have been met. The second is Agreement. There is clearly an agreement as there has been an offer and the offer was accepted. ...
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...another car that he was interested in purchasing. This was just a week into the agreement. Mark was not happy about the fact that Johnny went and purchased a car without giving him the full two weeks to make up his mind as into if he was willing to sell the car or not to Johnny. Johnny then told Mark that he is revoking his offer. Mark was not happy with this at all. To make things a little better, Johnny gave Mark a promise to pay him 10,000 dollars for some work Mark had previously helped him with around his home a year or so ago. Mark took that offer. About a week or so later, Johnny reneged on that promise to pay Mark the 10,000 dollars for his help. Mark was very upset at this point. Mark decided that he was going to sue Johnny for the breach of contract for the car as well as the promise to pay for the help that he had given Johnny for the amount of 10,000. When it comes to breach of contract there must be a promise made. A promise is a declaration that binds the person who makes it to do or not to do a certain act. An offer is a promise or commitment to perform or refrain from performing some special act in the future. Johnny made the offer to Mark to buy the car, Mark did not ask Johnny if he wanted to purchase the car. Mark just informed Johnny that he would leave offer that Johnny made open for two weeks to figure out if he...
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...Consideration is the final part of the contract and it is a necessary part for all simple contracts. Consideration is something of value given or promised in exchange for the promise given by the other party to the contract. According to Lord Pollock’s, the definition of consideration is “An act or forbearance of one party, or the promise thereof, is the price for which the promise of the other is bought, and the promise thus given for value is enforceable”. Also in the case of Currie v Misa (1875), it was stated that “consideration may consists either in some right, interest, profit or benefit occurring to the one party, or some forbearance, detriment, loss of responsibility, given or suffered or undertaken by the other.” Consideration consists of a few elements which were developed through many cases. First, consideration must exist if a simple contract is to be enforceable. But formal deeds are the exception because of the formality of the document itself. Second, consideration can be present (executed) or future (executor), but past consideration is not acceptable. If any services were made before the promise, it will not be consider as a consideration. Third, consideration must come from the promise, but need not move to the promisor. It can be move to a third party who is nominated by the promisor. Fourth, consideration needs not to be adequate or commercially realistic. Therefore, if the consideration of a contract is only nominal and doesn’t have the true value of the...
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...object of which is to create a legal obligation i.e., a duty enforceable by law. From the above definition, we find that a contract essentially consists of two elements: (1) An agreement and (2) Legal obligation i.e., a duty enforceable by law. As per section 2 (e) "Every promise and every set of promises, forming the consideration for each other, is an agreement." Thus it is clear from this definition that a 'promise' is an agreement. Section 2 (b) states that "When the person to whom the proposal is made signifies his assent thereto the proposal is said to be accepted. A proposal, when accepted, becomes a promise." An agreement, therefore, comes into existence only when one party makes a proposal or offers to the other party and that other party signifies his assent (i.e., gives his acceptance) thereto. In short, an agreement is the sum total of 'offer' and 'acceptance'. Example, A promises B to sell his horse for Rs. 10,000/-. The Law of Contract deals with such promises which create legal obligations. This excludes those promises made in common life which may be morally binding but creates no legal binding. Promises which do not give rise to legal obligations are not contracts. For example, if A promises B to attend the dinner and fails to attend then B cannot sue A for the price of non-consumed food. The Law of contract creates obligation between the parties to the contract and not against the whole world. According to Section 10, “All agreements are contracts if they...
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...unconditional promises to pay a fixed sum of money on demand or at a certain time. Promissory notes, bills of exchange, checks, drafts, and certificates of deposit are all examples of negotiable instruments. Negotiable instruments may be transferred from one person to another, who is known as a holder in due course. Upon transfer, also called negotiation of the instrument, the holder in due course obtains full legal title to the instrument. Negotiable instruments may be transferred by delivery or by endorsement and delivery. One type of negotiable instrument, called a promissory note, involves only two parties, the maker of the note and the payee, or the party to whom the note is payable. With a promissory note, the maker promises to pay a certain amount to the payee. Another type of negotiable instrument, called a bill of exchange, involves three parties. The party who drafts the bill of exchange is known as the drawer. The party who is called on to make payment is known as the drawee, and the party to whom payment is to be made is known as the payee. A check is an example of a bill of exchange, where the individual or business writing the check is the drawer, the bank is the drawee, and the person or business to whom the check is made out is the payee. To be valid a negotiable instrument must meet four requirements. First, it must be in writing and signed by the maker or drawee. Second, it must contain an unconditional promise (promissory note) or order (bill of exchange) to pay a certain...
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...Essentially, consideration is one of the sixth elements of contract which will be discussed in this essay. According to Lord Pollock, in Dunlop v Selfridge Ltd, consideration is ‘an act or forbearance of one party or the promise thereof, is the price for which the promise of the other is bought, and the promise thus given for value is enforceable,’ Some elements of consideration which also will be discussed are it must be sufficient in the eyes of law, it need not be adequate, it must not so vague, it can be present or future, but cannot be past. In this essay, I am going to discuss about consideration needs only be sufficient, not adequate and to consider whether there is a sufficient consideration in situations where there is pre-existing legal or contractual duty, and in situations as in Williams and Roffrey Bros or practical benefit. Consideration need only be sufficient, not adequate. It means the court has no interest in determining whether the consideration for a promise is equal to the value of that promise. As long as there is some consideration provided for the promise, the court will enforce that promise. Furthermore, it can be divided into 4 parts. The first part is consideration must have value in the eyes of the law. It means the price does not necessarily to be right as long as there is a value, and the court will not process any further. The case that illustrates this concept is Chappel & Co. v Nestle Co. Ltd. Nestle offered the opportunity to purchase recorded...
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...potentially pay to go to Ivy league schools. However, it is harder for students like me that have to worry about the cost. Teachers don’t say, “make sure you are saving up money for college” because It is just assumed that everyone will be drowned in student loans. Public schools make students anticipate going to any college or university without including the key...
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...difficulties as the supplier demanded 25% increase in the contract price due to collapse of the Malarian peso. Muldoon agreed to the supplier’s demand only because Bronson agreed to pay him additional $7000 in order to ensure the supply of shirts in time. Later on Bronson refused to pay the additional amount due to concert not being that successful. In this case Muldoon went ahead with the contract and agreed to pay the supplier extra amount. As a result, Bronson derived a practical benefit of receiving the supply of shirts in time for the concert. Also, he avoided the hassle of looking for a new contractor. Similarly in the case Williams v Roffey Bros & Nicholls court held that because the plaintiff agreed to perform his existing obligations, the defendant avoided the trouble and expense of engaging another carpenter. Consequently, defendant secured a practical benefit. Therefore continuation was good consideration for their promise. So, applying the practical benefit test from Williams v Roffey in this case suggests that continuation of the contract by Muldoon was a good consideration for Bronson’s promise to pay him additional $7000 as Bronson derived a practical benefit. Therefore, Muldoon is entitled to claim the additional $7000 from Bronson. b) The issue is whether Tony’s promise to pay Muldoon is supported by consideration or not. In this case there is an existing contract between Muldoon and Bronson in which Muldoon is supposed to deliver 2000 shirts to him. When...
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...Offer The first element in a valid contract would be offer. An offer or a promise or an agreement needs to be in contract because if there is no offer than there will be no contract. In the Contracts Act, 1950, the first elements in a contract would be offer. It is one of the elements to make sure that the contract is legally valid or acceptable. In a contract, it is very important that a party would make an offer. There is a difference of offer between an advertisement and an option. To make an offer, there should be at least two parties or even more so that it would be legally capable of entering into a contract. If the offer is accepted than it would constitutes to a legally valid contract. When an offer is being made, the other party or person would know what is being offer and what the person or party who made the offer expect to have in return. It is the same when anybody goes on a holiday, stays at a hotel and so on. For example, a family has made an arrangement with a tour agency to have a holiday at Hong Kong for a few days. The tour agency would make a contract by making forms to the family which would have to be filling up. The family member who fills up the form would have to be clear with the rules and regulations given by the tour agency company. Once it is fills up, the contract has been made between the family and the tour agency. 1.1.2 Acceptance After having an offer in the contract, there should be acceptance. For a contract to be made there should be acceptance...
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...contains an order or promise to do any act in addition to the payment of money is not negotiable. But the negotiable character of an instrument otherwise negotiable is not affected by a provision which authorizes the sale of collateral securities in case the instrument be not paid at maturity; or (b) Authorizes a confession of judgment if the instrument be not paid at maturity; or (c) Waives the benefit of any law intended for the advantage or protection of the obligor; or (d) Gives the holder an election to require something to be done in lieu of payment of money. But nothing in this section shall validate any provision or stipulation otherwise illegal. Acts in addition to payment of money A negotiable instrument must be payable in “a sum certain in money.” (1) General Rule. – As a general rule, the instrument is non-negotiable if it contains a promise or order to do any act in addition to the payment of money. (par. 1.) The prohibition is based on the fact that while one could be indorsed, the other would have to be assigned. (see Sec. 30) EXAMPLES: “I promise to pay or order P1,000.00 and to deliver a horse.” (2) Exceptions. – The law, however, gives exceptions (Sec. 5 [a to d.] to the general rule. a. Sale of collateral securities. EXAMPLE: “I promise to pay P or order the sum of P10,000.00 on November 25,2004 secured by a ring I delivered to him by way of pledge and which he could seek should I fail to pay him at maturity.” ...
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...Introduction Based on the case, developer Gail Watcher will be responsible to pay the pipe for Olander which included all of the contract work in accord with the plans, specifications and proposal prepared by the Watcher. Every decision was applied under Contract Act 1950. The acts that relevant to the case were section 26, section 28, and section 9. Body Under section 26, an agreement without consideration is void unless it is in writing and registered, or in a promise to compensate for something done, or is a promise to pay a debt barred by limitation law. So, Olander Contracting Co is right, developer Gail Wachter should pay for the pipe. In their water and sewer construction contract, it state that “among other things, connecting a IO-inch sewer line from Wachter’s housing development to the city’s existing 36-inch concrete sewer main and installing a manhole at the connection, to be paid for by Wachter”, Wachter is promise to paid Olander. Under section 26 (b),”an agreement made without consideration is void unless is a promise to compensate for something done. In that section, it said that “it is a promise to compensate, wholly or in a part, a person who has already voluntarily done something for promisor, or something which the promisor was legally compellable to do so” the contact is not void, so Wachter should paid Olander as he promise. A case that support this was Co-operative Central Bank Ltd (in receivership) v Feyen Development Sdn Bhd [1997] 2 MLJ 829. The case...
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...consideration, both parties must promise to give or do something for the other. (Note: if a contract is made by deed, then consideration is not needed.) In other word, consideration can be described as the mutual rights and promises made by the parties to a contract. This can be either a promise to do something that a person not legally obligated to do, or a promise not to do something that a person have the right to do (often, this means a promise not to file a lawsuit). There are a lot of rules that must be taken in order to govern consideration. One of them is consideration can be present or future, but not past. Present consideration is executed when the consideration is performed at the time the contract is made. As an example, Lin offers RM100.00 reward for the return of her lost handbag, if Alex finds the bag and returns it, Lin's consideration is executed. Meanwhile, future consideration will happen when there is an exchange of promises to perform acts in the future. For example, Mei promises to deliver goods to John at a future date and John promises to pay on delivery. If Mei does not deliver them, this is a breach of contract and John can sue. However, past consideration is not a valid consideration and has no legal value. Past consideration arises when a promisee’s action has happened before the promisor made his promise. This can be proved in the Roscorla v. Thomas case. In this case, Roscorla purchased a horse from Thomas and demanded a promise from Thomas that the horse...
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...accepted definition of consideration which is a vital element in a contract. A well-known principle of the law of contract holds that consideration must be sufficient but does not need to be adequate. It means that consideration must be of identifiable value whatever how small it is but cannot be as same valuable as the other party’s one. (Nicola, 2010 P44) However, when the duty arose under a previous contract with the same person, it is an existing duty also an insufficient consideration. Similarly, when the duty arose under the general law of the land or when the duty arose under a previous contract with a third party, it performs as an existing duty. (Nicola, 2010 P45) Is there any sufficient consideration provided by Jack for the promise of￡2,000 by Northampton Town FC or is he just carrying out his contracted duty? Jack made a contract with Northampton Town FC to lay new turfs so it is an existing duty for Jack.He is just carrying out his contracted duties to finish the job. In another word, it is an insufficient consideration of him to create a new contract. It was not possible to create two contracts by giving the same person the same consideration twice. E.g. in the case Stilk v Myrick (1809), the captain refused to paid the sailors the wages which he promised in the case of two sailors had deserted. It is a similar example to prove the principle. (Nicola, 2010 P46) Conversely, the case Hartley v Ponsonby (1857) were similar to Stilk v Myrick except that half of...
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...entitled to a commission only if he performed by "finding a purchaser of the above property." If the documents in question are merely offers limited to acceptance by performance only, the trial judge's analysis and conclusion would be correct. We cannot agree that the documents were only offers for a unilateral contract. The documents illustrate what has been termed "the usual practice" in the making of bargains. One party indicates what he will do and what he requires in exchange and the other then agree. These documents, when first executed by the owner and tendered to the broker, constituted offers which, when accepted by the broker by his execution, constituted contracts. The contract is bilateral because it contains mutual promises made in exchange for each other by each of the two contracting parties. The most common recurring brokerage transaction is one in which the owner employs a broker to find a...
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...which the Court did not determine, * Properly stating the Decision of the Court, * The reasons as identified by the Court for its Decision, * Your analysis of whether the issues were framed properly or not, * Your analysis as to the correctness of the reasoning of the Court and * Your Opinion on the impact of the decision on the Law in general. The Law as it stood before the Case Pre-existing Duty Rule: This case was decided on the basis of Principle of CONSIDERATION under the existing Law of Contracts and the law was same before the ruling of this case. When a seaman is bound by his contract of service to serve for a particular voyage, a promise to increase his wages, unless there is increased duty or hazard, does not bind the promisor.2 It is otherwise, however, if the promise is made in consideration of increased peril and labor under circumstances which would have justified the seaman in throwing up the contract. The Judgment was inspired by a preceding case Harris v. Watson. However the applicability of Stilk v Myrick was still debatable until it was overturned by Williams v Roffey Bros & Nicholls (Contractors) Ltd. Facts Of The Case This is related...
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