Offer PDF

Offer What is the definition of contract? - Agreement between 2 or more parties that give rights to an agreement that obligates the parties concern to fulfil their promises. What is the example case that represents a contract? - Eurymedon What is the requirement of a contract? - Ac...

Offer What is the definition of contract? - Agreement between 2 or more parties that give rights to an agreement that obligates the parties concern to fulfil their promises. What is the example case that represents a contract? - Eurymedon What is the requirement of a contract? - According to Lord Wiberforce, a contract should have - A valid offer - An equivocal acceptance - An intention to create a legal relationship - Consideration How can a contract be enforceable? - Must be based on mutuality of intent What is the type of contract? - Bilateral contract - Contract between 2 or more parties - An obligation by promising the other for something - Unilateral contract - Contract between 1 party and the world at large - An obligation assumed by 1 parties - Usually is reward in return for performing a certain act What is the definition of offer? - According to Treitel in The Law of Contract, an offer defined as - “An expression of willingness to contract on certain terms, made with the intention that it is to become binding as soon as it is accepted by the person to whom it is addressed.” What is the difference between offeror & offeree? - Offeror : Person making the offer - Offeree : Person to whom offer is made The offer can be made to who? - A specific person - A group of people - To the world at large / to the public What is the use of objective tests? - Is used in court to infer the intention of the parties to reach an agreement based on the facts. What is the case for a unilateral contract? - Carlil & Carbolic Smoke Ball - Case fact: - D placed an advertisement on their product & claimed that it could prevent flu - D promised through the advertisement that anyone who used it for a specific time and still caught flu will be paid 100 pounds - The advert further stated that the company had demonstrated its sincerity by placing £1000 in a bank account to act as the reward. - C used it and still got flu but D refused to pay - Court held that: - Contract made to world at large can be counted as an offer & it is binding - C win the case - Principle: - Offer can be addressed to the general public & are accepted when the offer is acted upon by a member of general public What is the definition of invitation to treat? - A preliminary stage where one party invite another to make an offer - Negotiation to enter contract What is the case of invitation to treat? - Gibson v Manchester City Council - Case fact: - C was interested in buying D house - D write to the claimant that ‘the house may be prepare to sell’ for 2180 pounds  - C quired on the purchased price because the path to the house was in bad condition - D refused to change the price because the price has taken into account the condition - C decided to carry on with the purchased as per the application - D refused to sell due to the change of political control - Court held that: - The letter which stated the price were merely one step in negotiations so it only amounted to an invitation to treat - D win the case - Principle: - Negotiation to enter into a contract can amount into invitation to treat but not an offer What is the case for an offer? - Storer v Manchester City Council - Case fact: - D sent C a document titled “Agreement for sale” and a letter which stated ‘if you will sign the agreement & return it, I will send you the agreement signed on behalf of the council in exchange’ - C signed & return the document - Another party took control of the council & refused to sell the property - Court held that: - There was binding obligation to sell - D has stated that he willing to sell the property if C returned the documents - C win the case What are the situations that can be an invitation to treat? - Advertisements - Display of Goods - A request for tender - An auctioneer request for bids What is the distinction of advertisement between bilateral & unilateral contracts? - Bilateral contract  - Invitation to treat - Unilateral contract - Offer for reward such as lost property or conviction of criminal generally treated as offer - Person making the advertisement intends to bound by it What is the case for advertisement to be considered as an invitation to treat? - Partridge v Crittenden - Case fact: - A advertisement in a magazine stated “Bramble finch cocks and hens for 25 shillings” - D was sued for offering to sell endangered species under the Protection of Birds Act 1954 - Court held that: - Advertisement is invitation to treat not an offer - D win the case What is the case for display of goods to be considered as an invitation to treat? - Fisher v Bell - Case fact: - D displayed flick knives at his shop window - Display for such weapons for sale was an offence according to S1(1) Restriction of Offensive Weapon Act 1959 - Court held that: - Lord Parker CJ : - Display of the knives with a price on it was only invitation to treat - D win the case (not offer to sale) - Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemist Ltd - Case fact: - Medicines was displayed on a self-serviced shelf - D was charged under Pharmacy & Poisons Act 1993 which required the supervisions of a registered pharmacist for the sale of any items in the Poison List - Court held that: - Shelf display was like an advertisement for a bilateral contract so it was an invitation  - Offer was made by customer who took the medicine to cashier and was accepted by cashier - Principle: - Where goods is sold on the self-service basis, displaying the goods is an invitation to treat & customer make an offer to buy when presenting the goods at the cash desk How can an offer cease to exist? - Specified time - Reasonable length of time - Rejection - Failure of precondition - Death of an offeror/offeree - Counter-offer - Request for information - Withdrawal & revocation What is the case for a counter-offer? - Hyde v Wrench - Case fact: - D offered to sell the farm to C at 1200 pounds but the offer is declined by C - D write another offer to C to sell the farm at 1000 pounds & he made it clear that it is the final offer - C offered 950 pounds for the farm but is refused by D - C agreed to buy the farm for 1000 pounds which was previously offered but D refused to sell - Court held that: - No binding contract for the farm - When a counter offer is made, this supersedes & destroy the original offer - When C offered 950 pounds, he cancelled the 1000 pounds offer & could not back track & accept - D win the case What is the case for requests for information? - Stevenson Jacques & Co v Mclean - Case fact: - D offered to sell iron to C at price of 40 shillings & offer remain open until Monday  - C sent telegram asking whether he would accept a payment of 40 over a two month period or what his longer limit for the payment - D did not reply and sell the iron to 3rd party - C sent a telegram to accept the offer on Monday - Court held that: - C only inquiry for more information about whether the terms of offer could be changed so it does not amount to a counter offer - The offer is still valid and the 2nd telegram formed a binding contract - D should have revoke the offer any time before the acceptance as the offer is remain open until monday but no revocation is communicated - C win the case What is the general rule of withdrawal? - an offer can be withdrawn anytime before an acceptance is made What is the case for the general rule of withdrawal? - Payne v Cave - Case fact: - C put his goods up for sale at a public auction - D made the highest bid but then changed his mind - D purported to withdraw the bid before the auctioneer’s hammer fell - Court held that - The D’s bid was an offer which had been withdrawn before it was accepted so there was no contract - D win the case What are the rules of withdrawal of an offer? - Withdrawal must be communicated - Offeror must notify offeree the withdrawal - Withdrawal can be communicated by 3rd party - From a reliable source / a reasonable party - Cannot withdraw for offer unilateral contract What is the case of withdrawal must be communicated? - Bryne v Leon Van Tien Hoven  - Case fact: - D wrote a letter to C offer to sale 1000 boxes of tin plates (1 Oct) - D (in Cardiff) C (in New York) so took 10-11 days to be delivered - C received the letter & accepted it by telegram on the same day (11 Oct) & write letter (15 Oct) - D sent a letter to C to withdraw the offer (8 Oct) but the letter arrived at (20 Oct) - Court held that: - Withdrawal of offer was ineffective as a contract has been constructed on 11 Oct when C accepted the offer - Offer cannot be withdrawn by simply posting a secondary letter which does not arrive until after the first letter had been responded & accepted - C win the case What is the case of withdrawal can be communicated by a 3rd party? - Dickinson v Dodds - Case fact: - D wrote to C an offer to sell his house at 800 pounds & open the offer until Friday - On Thursday, D accepted an offer from a 3rd party & sell his house - C claimed that he was going to accept the offer but he did not say anything because he understood that the offer was open until Friday - D communicated that offer has been withdrawn through a friend of C - Court held that: - The offer can be revoked any time before there is acceptance & there was no deposit to change this situation so there is no obligation to keep the offer open - Communication made by a friend or other party that the offer had been withdrawn was valid - D win the case What is the general rule of withdrawal in a unilateral contract? - Revocation for unilateral contract cannot take place once offeree has commenced performance What is the example case of cannot withdraw an offer in a unilateral contract? - Errington v Errington & Woods - Case fact: - A father bought a house on mortgage for his son & daughter-in-law & promised that if they paid off the mortgage, they could have the house - C started to pay the mortgage but before finished paying, their father died - D(his widow) claimed the house - Court held that: - There was a unilateral contract between the father & the couple where the father promise to give them the house in return for their act of paying the mortgage - It could not be revoked once the couple entered on performance of the act but it would cease to bound by them if they left it incomplete or unperformed which they have not done - Contract was held to be binding unless they stopped making payment - C win the case What is the case that withdrawal is allowed in a unilateral contract? - Shuey v United States What is the exception to the communication rule? - If offeree moves to a new address without notifying offeror, withdrawal sent to the last known address will be effective on delivery to that address - Withdrawal is effective when it reaches offeree even if he fails to read it (only apply if it is sent by telax or fax during normal business hours) - If offeror sends one offer first and subsequently sends a modified one later, the first offer is said to have been revoked What is the case for withdrawal taking effect even if the offeree fails to read it? - The Brimnes - Case fact: - D sell a ship to C on the condition that the ship would be time-charted back to them  - On several occasions, the hire payment was made later than agreed - C sent a message by Telax withdrawing the ship from service during normal office hours - D did not read it until the next day & had already made the payment - Court held that: - Notice of withdrawal was sent during ordinary business hours so D should have read the Telax but they did not - The withdrawal must be regarded as having been ‘received’ & effected at that time not when the withdrawal been read What is the case for withdrawal of the modified offer? - Pickfords v Celestica - Case fact: - C offered to undertake the relocation of D’s business equipment to new premises, quoting a rate per vehicle load with various extras - 2 weeks later, C submitted a fixed price offer & D purported to accept the 1st offer - - Court held that: - C’s 1st offer was not capable of acceptance when D purported to do so because D’s acceptance amounted to a counter-offer which was accepted by C’s conduct in undertaking the relocation of the equipment - Therefore the contract was based on ‘per vehicle’ rate Topic Case Contract Eurymedon Offer Carlil v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. Invitation to treat Gibson v Manchester City Council Storer v Manchester City Council Counter-offer Hyde v Wrench Request of Information Stevenson Jacques & Co v McLean Withdrawal of offer General rule  - Payne v Cave Must be communicated - Bryne v Leon Van Tien Hoven Communicated by 3rd parties - Dickinson v Dodds Unilateral contract - Errington v Errington Woods Fail to read - The Brimnes Modified offer - Pickfords v Celestica