offer and acceptance

Question 1

what is a contract?

Answer 1

an agreement between two or more parties which is legally binding on them (Jones, 2011)

Question 2

what does legally binding mean?

Answer 2

if the contract s breached its against the law

Question 3

whenever you buy something is it a contract?

Answer 3

yes every purchase is a contract

Question 4

what are the three fundamentals of contracts?

Answer 4

offer from a party and an acceptance from another and consideration

Question 5

what is an offer?

Answer 5

a statement or expression of willingness to contract on certain terms made, this is done with the intention that once accepted a binding agreement will exist

Question 6

how many people can an offer be made to?

Answer 6

as many as you want eg lost dog posters

Question 6

how do you make an offer?

Answer 6

orally
in writing
implied by action

Question 7

what is an invitation to treat (I2T)?

Answer 7

a term used in contract law to describe a situation where one party invites others to make an offer to enter into the contract, it cant be accepted and it is only an indication the party is open to negotiation

Question 8

give examples of an I2T

Answer 8

in a shop when buying an item the price is only what the shop is willing to start negotiating at and the customer is making an offer making it an I2T

goods on display at a store

a website

advertisements

Question 9

why is an advert an I2T?

Answer 9

because theres only limited stock of the item therefore they cant guarantee you the product meaning millions of contracts would the be broken

Question 10

what is a unilateral contract?

Answer 10

a type of contract where one party promises to do something on completion of a specific act or condition by another party. eg missing dog posters

Question 11

what is a bilateral contract?

Answer 11

a normal contract exchanging mutual promises

Question 12

can advertisements ever be treated as offers?

Answer 12

yes when very specific

Question 13

what is a tender?

Answer 13

used when a person is seeking to have work done for them and its a statement issued asking parties to submit there terms which they are prepared to carry out this work eg asking contractors to see how much something will cost

Question 14

what is an example of a referential tender?

Answer 14

ill pay £5 more than the highest bidder and is not allowed

Question 15

is a tender an offer or an I2T?

Answer 15

an I2T the tendee doesn’t have to accept any offers even if its a low price unless they say they will accept the lowest price then its an offer

Question 16

what is request for information?

Answer 16

its not an offer eg if i put my pencil up for sale will you buy it? or do you take credit card?

Question 17

what is communication of an offer?

Answer 17

an offer must be communicated to another party before there can be acceptance eg if you find a lost dog give it back to the owner and dont realise theres a reward you cant claim it once you see the poster

Question 18

what must an offer have to be binding?

Answer 18

a fixed good/service/action, a fixed price, must be the start of the negotiation, must be communicated to the offeree

Question 19

how can you terminate an offer?

Answer 19

acceptance: once accepted the offer is gone
death of the offeror or offeree
lapse of time
destruction of the subject matter before acceptance
rejection/counter offer
revocation

Question 20

what is meant by a lapse in time?

Answer 20

if theres a time limit thats gone over then the offer is terminated if no time limit it will lapse at a reasonable time eg a long time and old age, shares switching etc

Question 21

what happens if you destroy the subject matter after acceptance?

Answer 21

the contract is frustrated - the contract stands and you breach for not supplying the item

Question 22

what is meant by a rejection or counter offer?

Answer 22

once the offer is rejected it cant be accepted after as this is seen as a new offer and can be rejected, a counter offer is essentially rejecting the old offer. A request for info is not a counter offer though

Question 23

what is revocation?

Answer 23

an offer being withdrawn, this can be done at any time as long as its before acceptance and it must be communicated before acceptance

Question 24

when CANT a unilateral contract be revoked?

Answer 24

not when performance has begun, a reasonable time must be given for performance to be completed eg if a dad said to his son he can have the house if payments are all completed on rime and all the payments have been on time if the dad dies the action can still be completed with reasonable time to complete it

Question 24

when can a unilateral contract be revoked?

Answer 24

has to revoke the offer using the same channel in which the offer was first communicated with the same notoriety (size and enphasis)

Question 24

what is meant by acceptance?

Answer 24

a final, unqualified, expression of assent to all term of an offer (Treitel, 1991)

Question 25

what happens if acceptance introduces new terms?

Answer 25

its a counter offer

Question 25

how do you communicate acceptance?

Answer 25

oral
in writing
by conduct (Brogden v metropolitan railway company 1877)

Question 26

what happens if no method of acceptance is stated?

Answer 26

then any reasonable method can be used but if they name a specific method that must be used then this becomes mandatory

Question 27

what is the postal rule?

Answer 27

when you put an acceptance letter etc in the post box or hand it over the desk this is when the offer has been accepted

Question 28

when is it reasonable to use post as a form of acceptance?

Answer 28

offeror states by post
previous dealings by post
postal rule can be displaced by contrary intention (Howrd 1974) which only applies to acceptance and not revocation

Question 29

whats the general rule of acceptance electronicaly?

Answer 29

a telex must arrive on time

must be during business hours

must be based on the businesses expectations of the company receiving this acceptance