Ratios Flashcards
Tweddle
Third parties cannot sue on contract due to lack of consideration (Tweddle).
Dunlop
Stranger cannot sue to enforce contract (Dunlop).
Woodar
Woodar overturns Jackson, reaffirms regular rule that recovery for or by a third party is not permitted.
Beswick
Executor of estate can sue on behalf of estate (Beswick).
McCannell
Can get around general privity rule because agent relationship (McCannell).
N.Z. Shipping
Test for agency (Lord Reid test) (N.Z. Shipping):
- If the party is meant to be covered by provisions.
- If the promisor is clearly acting as agent for the party.
- If the promisor has authority to do this.
- Consideration moves from party through agent to promisee (intention to create legal relations).
London Drugs
Two-step test for employees being party to a contract made by their employer (London Drugs):
- The limitation of liability clause must (expressly or impliedly) extend the benefit to the employee(s).
- The employee(s) must have been acting in the course of their employment performing the services provided for in the contract when the loss occurred.
Fraser River
Subrogation uses same test as employment per Fraser River.
Qualities that must exist for fraudulent misrepresentation:
- Representation.
- Representation of fact.
- Fraudulent representation.
- Intended to induce contract.
- Is material.
Smith
Statement of opinion from a knowledgeable party to one who is not is a representation (Smith).
Redgrave
Statement made to induce another party into a contract is misrepresentation (Redgrave).
Wren
Failures or omissions can qualify as misrepresentation if they are half-truths (Wren).
Kupchak
Monetary compensation may be granted under rescission where it is impossible or inequitable to restore the original property and there is fraud (Kupchak).
Ennis
Innocent misrepresentation leads to rescission, but plaintiff must initiate process for rescission in a reasonable amount of time (Ennis).
Halleran
The minimization of damages does not preclude the remedy of rescission for misrepresentation (Halleran).
Leaf
After a reasonable amount of time has passed in cases of a contractual warranty, contract can no longer be rescinded (Leaf).
Heilbut
It is a high/strict standard to apply to find collateral warranty — innocent representations are only referred to as warranties if they have clearly been intended to be warranties by the parties (intention to create legal relations) (Heilbut).
Dick Bentley
A representation made in the course of dealings for a contract for the very purpose of inducing another party to enter into the contract and there is unequal access to information, it is presumed prima facie to be a warranty of that contract and therefore, a breach of it will lead to a cause of action for damages even if it is innocently made — defendant can rebut by defendant showing the representation was actually innocent (Dick Bentley).
Hong Kong Fir
An innominate term is a “wait and see” situation — examine the consequence of the particular breach in issue and determine whether, in light of those circumstances, the innocent party should be entitled to disaffirm the contract, or just get damages (Hong Kong Fir).
Bhasin
Implied duty to perform in good faith/duty of honest performance (Bhasin).
Goss
Parol evidence refers to evidence not contained in the written document (Goss).
Hawrish
There must be clear intent that the parties are creating a separate, collateral agreement and a collateral agreement cannot be established where it is inconsistent with or contradicts the written agreement (Hawrish).
Bauer
- Where a written agreement appears on its face to be a complete agreement, parol evidence could not be admitted that contradicts, varies, adds to, or subtracts from the terms of the written agreement (Bauer).
- Where there is sufficient evidence of oral misrepresentation which a) induced a party to a contract and b) was relied on by the party, then parole evidence can be included (Bauer).
Gallen
The Canadian approach is to create presumption in favour of written agreement, and the presumption is:
- Strongest when alleged oral misrepresentation contrary to written terms; less strong when merely adds to them.
- Stronger where parties themselves negotiated and prepared written agreement; less strong where printed form used.
- Less strong where contest was between specific oral representation and general exemption/exclusion clause, in which case can read specific representation as intended to be exception to more general stipulation.
Hedley Byrne
If, but for the lack of consideration, a promise would have been a contract, this can create a relationship “equivalent to contract” where liability can attach to misrepresentation (Hedley Byrne).
Esso
The Hedley Byrne principle applies to contract law as well — when two parties in a “special relationship” are parties to a contract, the party with special knowledge has a duty not to be negligent in the representations that they give to the other party (Esso).
George Mitchell
One cannot opt out of all liability using an exclusion clause — needs to be fair and reasonable (George Mitchell).
Parker
Distilling approach — condition binding if a) customer knew of condition existence or b) defendant gave sufficient notice of conditions on a standard of general public understanding (Parker).
Thornton
The more onerous the exemption conditions, the greater the notice is that must be drawn to it (the public must be able to predict what the severity of the term is from the notice drawn to it) (Thornton).
Interfoto
Proportionality is applicable to all clauses (not just exemption clauses) — the more onerous, the more notice required (Interfoto).
McCutcheon
Knowledge of terms is tested subjectively, thus prior relations are therefore not enough unless there was actual subjective knowledge of the condition (McCutcheon).
L’Estrange
A person who signs a contractual document is bound by all the terms even if the person chose not to read them (L’Estrange).
Tilden
In the consumer context, if a standard form contract is involved that includes an exclusionary clause and is signed in haste, it will likely not form part of the contract (relaxing the traditional rule that signing a document makes you responsible for its terms) — applying Thornton v. Shoe Lane Parking Ltd. to the context of a signed document (Tilden).
Delaney
If one signed a contract they are bound to the terms if they should expect these terms (Delaney).
Hunter Engineering
Fundamental breach is where the foundation of the contract has been undermined, or where the very thing bargained for has not been provided (Hunter Engineering).
Karsales
If a breach goes to the root of the contract (a fundamental breach), the exempting clause takes no effect (Karsales).
Solway
Limitation clauses implied by statute can be overridden by unconscionability (Solway).
Davidson
Court won’t lightly interfere with freedom of contract, but it will declare terms to be void if it would be unreasonable and unconscionable to bind the parties to their formal bargains (Davidson).
Tercon
Three step test to determine whether exclusion clause is applicable (Tercon):
- Does the exclusion clause apply?
- If it applies, was it unconscionable at the time the contract was formed?
- Public policy.
Plas-Tex
A party to a contract will not be permitted to engage in unconscionable conduct secure in the knowledge that no liability can be imposed upon it because of an exclusionary clause (Plas-Tex).
Fairbanks
In order to recover for the work that is “substantially” completed, the party in default who wants to recover must provide evidence from which a new contract to accept and pay for the work done could be inferred (did other party prevent completion, was the new contract entered into for part performance?) (Fairbanks).
Markland
Where the work was completed, but completed poorly, and defects have been or can be fixed, courts tend to find substantial performance (more likely to find that contractor is owed something) (Markland).
McRae
Expectation damages cannot be awarded where the profitability of the contract is in doubt and where reliance damages can compensate the plaintiff adequately (McRae).
Bowlay
When a plaintiff is better off breaching the contract than continuing to perform and incurring losses, he cannot recover expectation damages for the breach (Bowlay).
Blake
Disgorgement damages are available in circumstances where wrongdoer should not be profiting from breach — mere cynical and deliberate (efficient) breach on its own does not attract disgorgement damages (Blake).
Jarvis
Damages would be awarded for intangible injuries only where the (single) object of the contract was a pleasurable experience — the “peace of mind” exception (Jarvis).
Vorvis
Test for whether punitive damages can be awarded (Vorvis):
- Defendant must not only commit breach of contract, but also act in a “harsh, vindictive, reprehensible, and malicious” manner; and
- In committing that breach of contract, the defendant must have committed another independently actionable wrong.
Whiten
Duty of good faith obligation can act as separate actionable wrong (separate actionable wrong is not just limited to tort) (Whiten).
Fidler
Principle limited to cases where the two requirements for awarding damages for mental distress is met (Fidler):
- Aggravated damages can be awarded when the object of the contract was to secure a psychological benefit that brings mental distress upon breach that is within the reasonable contemplation of the parties and the degree of suffering was sufficient so as to warrant compensation.
- Punitive damages should only be awarded exceptionally and in cases of clear bad faith.
Hadley
Rule for damages recoverable (Hadley):
- In reasonable contemplation of the parties as probably result of the breach at formation as naturally occurring in the usual course of things (imputed knowledge acceptable).
- Plus any special circumstances communicated (actual knowledge required).
Victoria Laundry
Damages should be measured by what is reasonably foreseeable as liable to result from a breach; depends on the knowledge of both parties (reasonable foreseeability is test for both rules) (Victoria Laundry).
Koufos
In order to be recoverable, the loss from the breach must have been foreseeable as a serious possibility at the time of contract formation (Koufos).
Scyrup
In the first Hadley rule, the knowledge may be imputed while in the second, the knowledge must be actual and must express details and magnitude (to foresee extent of loss) (Scyrup).
Asamera
An innocent party must take steps to mitigate their losses — this means that either steps must be taken to mitigate or steps must be taken to bring matters to a swift legal conclusion (Asamera).
White and Carter
- Principle of election (to accept breach) trumps the principle of mitigation (White and Carter).
- The rule in this case is bad law because it encourages wasteful behaviour because the principle of election doesn’t require mitigation; as mentioned though, courts often don’t follow the principle in this case.
