Contract law Flashcards
What are the essential features of a valid contract?
Offer, acceptance, consideration, capacity, legality.
Who is the offeror?
the person that makes the offer
Who is the offeree?
the person that accepts the offer
What is an invitation to treat?
It’s when someone shows they are open to negotiations, but they’re not offering a contract just yet.
what is the snapping up doctrine?
allows a party to accept an offer without further negotiation once the offer has been made and communicated
what is a bilateral contract?
a party offers to do something in return for an action by another party
what is a unilateral contract?
a party promises to perform an action in return for a specific act e.g offer of a reward for the return of lost property.
what is a counteroffer?
someone changes the terms of an original offer which replaces the original one and creates a new one
what is the postal rule?
acceptance of an offer is effective upon posting not when the letter is received
what is consideration?
something of value that is exchanged between parties when forming a contract. e.g money,services, goods or a promise to do something or refrain from doing something
what is promissory estoppel?
stops a party going back on a promise
what are implied terms?
The terms which are not specifically agreed by the contracting parties, but which are implied into the contract by the courts or by Parliament.
what are express terms?
The terms specifically agreed by the contracting parties Orally or in writing
What are the 3 basic requirements for a contract?
Agreement, Consideration, intention to create legal relations
What is the Gibson v Manchester city council case about? (buying house)
Mr. Gibson applied to buy a house from the Manchester City Council. The Council sent him a letter stating they “may be prepared to sell” the property, asking for a formal application. Gibson then replied, accepting the terms. The Council, however, later argued that their letter was just aninvitation to treat, not an offer.
The House of Lords ruled that the Council’s letter was indeed aninvitation to treat, not an offer. Therefore, there was no contract between Gibson and the Council because the Council had never made a definite offer that could be accepted.
what happened in the Partridge v Crittenden 1968 case? (birds for sale)
In this case, Partridge placed an ad in a magazine offering birds for sale. Crittenden ordered some birds based on the ad but Partridge was charged with illegally offering a protected species for sale. The court ruled that the ad was aninvitation to treat, not an offer. This meant that Partridge was not making a direct offer to sell the birds, but merely inviting people to make offers to buy them.
The case confirmed that advertisements are typicallyinvitations to treat, not offers, meaning the seller can accept or reject the offers made in response to the ad.
What happened in Carlill v carbolic smoke ball company 1893?
The company advertised that if someone used their smoke ball and still got the flu, they would get £100. Mrs. Carlill used the product but still got sick, so she claimed the money. The company argued the ad wasn’t a real offer.
The court decided in favor of Mrs. Carlill, saying the ad was a validoffer, and by using the smoke ball as instructed, she accepted it. The company had to pay her the £100. This case showed that an offer can be made through an advertisement. it was an offer as The company stated that if someone used their product correctly and still caught the flu, they would pay £100. This promise was definite and not just an invitation to treat.
what happens in Pharmaceutical society v boots 1953?
Boots had a self-service system where customers picked out medicines themselves. The law said a pharmacist must be there when selling medicines, but the Pharmaceutical Society said the sale happened when the customer took the item from the shelf, which wasn’t allowed.
The court said the sale actually happens when the customer brings the item to the counter, and the cashier accepts it. So, the court ruled in favor of Boots, saying their system was fine.
what happened in fisher v bell 1961 -
In this case, a shopkeeper, Mr. Bell, displayed a flick knife in his shop window with a price tag. Fisher, a police officer, saw it and charged Bell for offering the knife for sale in violation of the law.
The court ruled that the display in the window was not an offer, but an invitation to treat, meaning the shopkeeper was inviting customers to make an offer to buy the knife. The court said that the display of goods in a shop window does not legally count as an offer to sell.
How does an invitation to treat differ from an offer?
- Offer: Can be accepted and results in a contract.
- Invitation to treat: Only invites negotiation or an offer and does not form a contract by itself.
What is an acceptance?
final agreement and acceptance to the terms of the offer
What is a counter offer?
killing the original offer and creating a new one.
What is the postal rule?
Thepostal rulemeans that an acceptance of an offer becomes legally effective as soon as it is posted, not when it is received.
what is revocation of a contract?
Revocation of a contractis when the person who made the offer (the offeror) withdraws or cancels the offer before it is accepted by the other party. Once revoked, the offer is no longer available to be accepted.
past consideration?
promise to reward someone for acts they performed in the past is not enforceable
what is the parole evidence rule?
If two parties have written down their agreement, and it’s clear, the court won’t consider anything said before or during the signing that tries to change or add to the written contract.
what is mistake?
mistakerefers to a misunderstanding or incorrect belief about a key aspect of the contract at the time it is made. It can affect the validity of the contract, as one or both parties may not have agreed to the same terms.
what is a unilateral mistake?
when only one party is mistaken about a term of the contract. The other party is aware of the mistake or has reason to know about it.
what is a mutual mistake?
when both parties are mistaken about a fundamental aspect of the contract
what is common mistake?
This is when both parties make the same mistake, but it is about something crucial that affects the contract’s purpose.
What is misrepresentation?
a false statement or misleading information made by one party to another, which induces the other party to enter into a contract.
What is fraudulent misrepresentation?
When one party knowingly makes a false statement with the intent to deceive the other party.
What is innocent misrepresentation?
When the false statement is made without intent to deceive and the person making it believes it to be true.
What is negligent misrepresentation?
When a party makes a false statement carelessly, without taking reasonable steps to ensure it is true.
