Contract Practice Flashcards
What is a contract?
• A contract is a legally binding promise (written or oral) by one party to fulfil an obligation to another party in return for consideration.
• A basic binding contract should comprise four key elements: offer, acceptance, consideration and intent to create legal relations
Please define ‘express terms’?
• Express terms are the terms of the agreement which are expressly agreed between the parties.
• Ideally, they will be written down in a contract between the parties but where the contract is agreed verbally, they will be the terms discussed and agreed between the parties.
Please define what is meant by ‘implied terms’?
A contractual term that has not been expressly agreed between the parties but has been implied into the contract either by common law or by statute.
What is tort?
A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act.
How do statutory provisions and contract provisions differ?
• Statutory provisions are set out by law and must be complied with regardless.
• Contract provisions relate to the contract in question and therefore only apply to a specific project.
What is your opinion of oral contracts?
While they are legally binding, the difficulty lies in proving the specific terms and conditions of the agreement. A written contract is always preferred.
What is a breach of contract?
A breach of contract occurs when one party in a binding agreement fails to deliver according to the terms of the agreement. A breach of contract can happen in both written and oral contracts.
What is the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009?
• October 2011 - The Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 (the “2009 Act”) came into force in England and Wales.
• The Act amended the Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 (the Construction Act).
• The Act changed the way construction contracts are entered into and introduced an amended regime for payment and adjudication
What are the key provisions under the Act?
Contracts:
• The LDEDC Act repeals the requirement for construction contracts to be in writing; therefore, contracts that are partly in writing or wholly oral are now covered. This will allow parties to go to adjudication even if their involvement is not formally recognised in writing.
Payment:
• Under the HGCR Act, a construction contract must have an ‘adequate mechanism’ for determining what payments are due and when they become payable.
• Pay-when-certified clauses can no longer be used to prevent paying a subcontractor on the basis that a certificate in the main contract is yet to be issued.
