LAWS1015 Final Preparation
Topic Sub-title Cases Legislation Principle Key point
1 Table of Contents
Offer ... 1
Invitations to treat ... 2
Acceptance ... 2
Postal ‘Acceptance’ Rule - PAR ... 3
Consideration ... 3
Consideration – Existing legal duty ... 4
Certainty ... 5
Conditional promise – Agreement to Negotiation 6 Conditional promise – Subject to finance ... 6
Certainty – if the term fails to be certain ... 6
Intention to Create Legal Relations ... 6
Traditional Approach: Presumption of intention .. 7
Modern Approach: use of presumption ... 7
Preliminary agreement 初步起草的协议 ... 7
Government agreement ... 7
Formalities ... 8
Part performance ... 8
Restitution ... 9
Estoppel ... 9
Remedial Approach of Estoppel ... 10
Terms – Express terms: types ... 11
Terms – Express terms: methods of incorporation ... 13
Terms – Implied terms ... 15
Terms – Implied terms – in law ... 15
Terms – Implied terms – in fact ... 16
Terms – Implied terms – some specific terms ... 16
Terms – Implied terms – by custom or usage ... 17
Terms – Implied terms – by statute ... 17
Construction ... 18
Exclusion Clause (EC) ... 18
Privity ... 20
Discharge by performance ... 21
Discharge by agreement ... 22
Discharge for failure of contingent condition ... 22
Discharge for breach ... 23
Termination for delay ... 24
Discharge for repudiation ... 25
Discharge for repudiation – anticipatory breach . 26 Restrictions and Process of termination ... 27
Consequences of affirmation ... 28
Consequences of termination ... 28
Restrictions on the right to terminate – Ready and Willingness (R&W) ... 29
Restrictions on the right to terminate – Equitable estoppel ... 30
Effect of termination ... 30
Discharge by frustration ... 31
Offer
Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Company [1893] 1 QB 256 à Unilateral offer
D的广告上写着任何人使用了药物两周3次而感 冒的人会有所赔偿。P使用了一次就感冒并索取 赔偿，D拒绝。后法院认为P可以获得赔偿 Principle:
(1) In unilateral offers communication of acceptance is not necessary. Performance of the conditions set out in the offer constitutes both acceptance and good consideration for the promise.
(2) Statements made in advertisements may be a mere ‘puff’ and not intended to be legally binding.
Yet if the advertisement contains promissory intent, it may constitute a unilateral offer.
(3) In order for the courts to determine whether there has been a valid offer, the test is that an offer
LAWS1015 Final Preparation
Topic Sub-title Cases Legislation Principle Key point
2 must normally be interpreted in the sense that it
would reasonably be understood by an ordinary person
Goldsborough Mort v Quinn (1910) 10 CLR 674 à revocation of an offer
D卖给P一块地并给了个offer说必须在一周内 accept，两天后D撤回了offer
Principle: An offer may be withdrawn at any time before acceptance
Dickinson v Dodds (1876) 2 Ch D 463 à revocation of an offer
D发offer打算将房子卖给P并给予offer有效的
时限，P在时限内同意了但没告诉D。当天P通 过第三方得知D已经将房子卖给别人。然后P 告诉D自己同意了offer但D说为时已晚 Principle: No particular form of revocation is required. All that is required is that the offeror in some way conveys (directly or indirectly) to the offeree that s/he had changed his or her mind about the offer.
Mobil Oil Australia v Wellcome International (1998) 81 FCR 475 à revocation of an offer of unilateral contract: whether the offeror may revoke an offer once the offeree has commenced performance?
P向经销商表示，任何在规定水平上工作了六年 的经销商都将免费获得另外九年的特许经营权。
P随后终止了该计划，D指控P违反合同。
Principle: The offeror is at liberty to revoke a unilateral offer once the performance of the Act, which constitutes acceptance and consideration, has commenced.
Butler Machine Tool Co v Ex-Cell-O Corp [1979] 1 WLR 401 à Counter offer – revocation of earlier offer
P以一个合同条款(抬价) 送货给D，但D回复条 款并拒绝了抬价，P退回D的回复并表明交货会 以抬高后的价格算。D拒绝抬价条款并要求回复 延误费用+利息
Principle:
(1) Acceptance must correspond to the offer. Any departure from the offer constitutes a counter- offer which kills the previous offer.
(2) To assess whether a counteroffer is existed: to look at all the documents passing between the
parties and glean from them, or from the conduct of the parties, whether they have reached agreement on all material points, even though there may be differences between the forms and conditions printed on the back of them.
Invitations to treat
• Invitations to treat和offer不同的是ITT没有 具体对象，所以没有具体的约束力
Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemists [1953] 1 QB 401 à ITT for a shop sale
D是一家自助服务的要点并被许可卖毒药。要放 在货架上供自由选择，P诉D违反s18 (1) Pharmacy & Poisons Act 1933
Principle: A contract is formed when the customer accepts the invitation to treat and offers to buy the item at the specified price to the shopkeeper.
Mac Robertson Miller Airline Services v.
Commissioner of State Taxation (WA) (1975) à ITT for a ticket
机票上的conditions算不算agreement
Principle: A binding contract is formed when the offeree receives the ticket (terms).
Acceptance
R v Clarke (1927) 40 CLR 227 à Intention to acceptance
P悬赏1000逮捕murder, D 在看到offer后，因 为自己也参与其中所以向P提供了murder的信 息，为了让自己得到保释的机会。
Principle: In order for a legally binding unilateral contract to be enforceable, a person accepting and performing must act on the offer.
Felthouse v Bindley (1862) 142 ER 1037 à acceptance by silence
D拍卖农场并与P商量马的价格。P告知D自己 认为合适的价格，D无回复。拍卖会中D把马 卖给了别人
Principle: An offeror can NOT impose on an offeree if an offer to which acceptance can be implied by silence or inaction. The offeree must do some
LAWS1015 Final Preparation
Topic Sub-title Cases Legislation Principle Key point
3 positive act indicating his intention to be
contractually bound.
Empirnall Holdings v Machon Paull Partners (1988) 14 NSWLR 523 à acceptance by conduct P帮D重建自己的site，双方履行合同义务但P 没签合同。是否是valid contract?
Principle: If a party takes the benefit of an offer, knowing the offeror expects to be paid, this will imply acceptance. The conduct of the offeree, including their silence, as signalling to the offeror that the offer had been accepted.
Brambles Holdings v Bathurst City Council (2001) NSWLR 153 à formation of contract without offer & acceptance
双方有合同去共同管理他们的固体废物处理站，
几年后D因液体垃圾需要交更多钱，所以与P 签订新合同for extra fee，但后来P决定涨价用
来做基金D拒绝。P寻求拿回extra fee
Principle: Express offer and acceptance does NOT need to be had in order for a binding contract to exist. If a manifestation表现 of agreement exist such as with the conduct of parties, a binding contract is enforceable.
Postal ‘Acceptance’ Rule - PAR
• A contract is made when and where acceptance of an offer is posted, even if it is received some time later or is lost in the post.
• PAR applies to:
- Telegrams 电报 (Leach Nominees v Walter Wright [1986])
- Facsimile message 传真sent through the 3rd party (Reece Bros Plastic Ltd v Hamon- Sobelco Australia Pty Ltd (1988))
• PAR does NOT apply to:
- Instantaneous form of communication.
i.e., telephone / telex communication 即时 通讯方式(Telephoneà Aviet v Smith and Searlys Pty Ltd (1956); Communicationà Express Airways v Port Augusta Air Services [1980])
Brinkibon v Stahag Stahl Und
Stahlwarenhandelsgesellschaft [1983] 2 AC 34 à when is acceptance effective
P起诉D违约，D的acceptance是通过
telex电讯方式传送的
Principle: The postal acceptance rule does not extend towards instantaneous messages such as fax, telex and even voice.
- Facsimile message传真, except for sending through the 3rd party
- Internet (Olivaylle Pty Ltd c Flottweg AG (No 4) [2009])
- Email & other electronic communication (s13A Electronic Transactions Act 2000 NSW)
à s13A(1a): Agreed between the originator and the addressee of an electronic
communication is the time of receipt of the electronic communication is the time when the electronic communication becomes capable of being retrieved by the addressee at an electronic address designated by the
addressee电子通信能够在收件人指定的
电子地址被收件人检索到的时间, or à s13A(1b): the time of receipt of the electronic communication at another electronic address of the addressee is the time when the electronic communication has become capable of being retrieved by the addressee at that address, and the addressee has become aware that the electronic communication has been sent to that
address. “能够被收件人检索”和“收件人意 识到电子通信已发送到该地址”时
à s13(2): for s13(1) to be valid, assumes that the communication is ‘capable of being retrieved by the addressee when it reaches the addressee’s electronic address’ 能够在 到达收件人的电子地址时被收件人检索
Consideration
• There must exist a relation of quid pro quo 交 换条件 (Australian Woollen Mills v
Commonwealth (1954) 92 CLR 424)
• Consideration must be sufficient (Chappell &
Co v Nestle [1960] AC 87)
