Chapter 2: Offer And Acceptance Flashcards
(15 cards)
Felthouse v Bindley 1862
Nephew undertook to sell a horse to his uncle.
Nephew asked for 30 guineas, uncle offered thirty pounds (Less valuable at the time due to gold prices).
Nephew agreed to sale but under the impression that it was at his price.
Informed uncle, who agreed to split the difference, 30l 15s
No further correspondence.
Nephew came to sell his livestock, instructed D, the auctioneer, not to sell the horse.
D mistakenly sold the horse.
Held: No contract had been made, only a proposal that had not been accepted by the nephew and as such was not binding.
As such, he had no claim.
Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Company (1893)
Defendants had claimed that their product would prevent influenza if used three times daily, or they would reward £100.
Woman used the ball, contracted the flu.
Argued that the advertisement was not directed at a particular person, a contract cannot be made with the whole world.
Held: Advertisement was an offer taken up not by the whole world, but only those who performed the conditions specified in the advertisement.
V entitled to recover.
Ward v Byham (1956)
Man fathered bastard child with D.
Threw her (D) out.
D later asked to take care of their daughter in exchange for £1 per week maintenance.
Father agreed.
D married, after which the father ceased the payments.
Held on appeal: Unilateral contract entered into, the terms of which provided payment for behaviour.
For as long as the child was properly cared for, as per the agreement, D was entitled to payment.
Centrovincial Estates Plc and v Merchant Investors Assurance Company Limited (1982)
Mediation.
Plaintiffs leaseholders of commercial property.
Leased a number of floors to defendants.
Clause: Rent review after 4 years to bring in line with current rates.
Contract received with apparent reduction in rent.
Defendants’ solicitor replied in acceptance.
Further correspondence claimed a mistake, rent actually doubled, solicitor for plaintiffs made a mistake.
Argued for plaintiffs that no contract was made, defendants must have known the offer was made in error, AND that there was no benefit to the plaintiff or detriment to the defendants for consideration, both preventing the completion of the contract.
Held: Not certain that defendants had no case, can not import knowledge.
Depriving themselves of right to put forward a counter offer counted as consideration, no matter how little the value (No consequence).
Held that there is a case to answer, leave to defend granted.
Fisher v Bell (1960)
Defendant had displayed a flick knife in window of shop with a price tag.
Officer inspected the knife, told shopkeeper it was illegal, met with ‘Why do suppliers keep bringing them around?’
Held: Display in shop window was invitation to treat, not formal offer (Though the judge admitted that the decision was made reluctantly).
Judges not in position to usurp legislation.
Plaintiff appealed. Denied.
Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots (1953)
Boots set up a self service shop.
Patrons selected goods from shelves that were required to be sold under supervision of a pharmacist under the Pharmacy and Poisons act.
Held: Goods on shelves were not an offer by the defendants to sell, rather an invitation to the customer to offer to buy.
Sale performed under supervision of pharmacist at cash register, brining action within the act.
Blackpool and Fylde Aero Club Ltd. v. Blackpool Borough Council (1990)
Council owned and ran Blackpool Airport which ran pleasure flights for holiday makers.
Flight operators chosen by tender process.
Deadline set, plaintiffs (Who had been successful twice previously) submitted tender and hour before deadline.
Town clerk did not empty post box until next morning, dating the tender late.
Defendants accepted lower tender.
Reissued tender process, successful applicant complained, subsequent tenders disregarded.
Held: Obligation implied by subsequent offer to tender.
Defendants liable for damages.
Harvela Investments Ltd v Royal Trust Co of Canada Ltd (1986)
Two parties bid on shares of company.
Plaintiffs bid $2.175m.
Defendants bid 2.1m OR 100k more than highest bid.
Defendants won.
On appeal: Referential bid invalid.
Fixed bids called for.
To highlight: If d’s bid was opened first, what was it?
Also, if this structure is accepted then the plaintiffs had no role in the bidding other than to set the price at which the defendant bought the shares, inherently unfair.
Vendors ordered to turn shares over to plaintiffs.
Partridge v. Crittenden (1968)
Defendant offered birds for sale in classifieds section of paper.
Listed as ‘closed ring’ specimens.
Plaintiff sent cheque requesting a hen.
Upon delivery, hen was not closed ring.
D charged with supplying illegal bird.
Appeal: Ad placed was invitation to treat, not offer of sale.
Held: Following Fisher v Bell, D was not offering sale.
Appeal allowed.
Obiter: Prosecution criticized for choosing the offer of sale, the only avenue destined to fail, over the completed sale or the possession of the bird for sale, both of which would have fared better in court.
Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking 1969
Plaintiff parked his car at automated parking machine.
Injured upon retrieval of his car, awarded damages.
Defendant company claimed T&Cs on ticket, which referred the customer to a lengthy notice placed near the machine and in the paying office, exempted them from liability.
Held: Contract formed before ticket issued.
Machine can not be reasoned with if customer rejects terms.
Notice of terms can not reasonably be said to have been brought to plaintiff’s attention.
No exemption afforded.
Appeal dismissed.
Storer v Manchester City Council 1974
Corporation offered favourable terms of contract of sale to sitting tenants.
Plaintiff applied and was offered a 25 year mortgage.
Contract offered specified plaintiff’s reply, then confirmation from corporation.
Plaintiff left date for completion blank.
Change in government changed whole agreement.
Plaintiff brought action for specific performance and won.
Appeal by corporation: Date was a material term.
Contract not completed, corporation sent no reply.
Held: Documents held sufficient to constitute completed contract in the circumstances (Whole arrangement designed to simplify process.)
Date was administrative matter, not affecting agreement between parties.
Appeal dismissed, specific performance ordered.
Trentham Ltd v Archital Luxfer (1993)
Company contracted to install aluminum framed windows, doors and screens.
Trentham charged for delays and defects, seeking to claim from Archital (Sub-contracted for the work)
Archital denied not only defects, but that there were ever contracts.
Came down to forms (Blue/grey, denoting different terms.)
Held: Work performed, payment made.
Contract formed by performance.
Doing showed an intention to enter into contractual relations.
Appeal denied.
Barry v Davies 2000
Plaintiff attended auction at which the third defendant had offered two engine analysers for sale with no reserve.
Plaintiff bid £200 each for the analysers, and in the absence of any other bidders won the auction.
Defendant withdrew the analysers and refused to sell, claiming the bid was too low, the value of the machines being a combined £28,000.
Plaintiff used for damages amounting to value of machines minus bid and auction costs to purchase similar machines new elsewhere.
Held at first instance and appeal:
Collateral contract made between auctioneer and plaintiff to sell to highest bidder.
Defendant broke contract, plaintiff entitled to recover.
Issue of consideration, no detriment to bidder.
Held: There is detriment up and until bidder withdraws, benefitting defendant by driving up value.
Appeal dismissed.
Brogden v Metropolitan Railway Co 1877
Plaintiffs entered into an agreement with defendants for coal at a fixed rate for a term of one year in order to avoid market fluctuations, set to rise over the course of the year.
Defendants supplied coal, but delivered late on more than one occasion and then finally ceased delivering at all.
Plaintiffs claimed for damages, defendants claimed there was no contract, they had written terms that had since been changed and nothing had been finalized.
Held: Changes to contract did not affect terms, save for the arbitrator, to which neither had an issue.
Both parties had been acting as pert he contract and had referred to in in correspondence.
Behaviour regulated by contract, if none existed then how were they conducting the business?
Plaintiffs entitled to recover.
Damages of just under 10k awarded.
Appeal dismissed with costs on same grounds.
Day Morris Associates v Voyce 2003
Couple divorcing, selling house.
Estate agent introduced potential buyer.
Couple rejected offer.
D1 paid share to D2, effected sale to buyer independently, without estate agent.
Agent learned of the sale, claimed breach of contract against D2.
Judge held that, though commission be payable despite no final contract being drawn up, D2 had now control over sale. Claim rejected.
On appeal: judge not in a position to construct a reservation that D2 must be in control of sale before commission payable.
She ceded control of sale to husband.
Appeal allowed.
