Lecturer: Miljen Matijašević
e-mail: miljen.matijasevic@gmail.com
G10, room 6, Tue 15:30-16:30
Session 6, 25 Nov 2014
1.
Revision of the Previous Session
2.
Contract
3.
Case studies
4.
The Angry Shopper (case study)
1.
a civil wrong committed against a person or
property - ............
2.
a person committing such an act - ............
3.
physical or economic harm or loss - ............
4.
making public a statement harming someone’s
reputation - ............
5.
legal responsibility for an offence - ............
6.
an interference with private property - ............
1.
a civil wrong committed against a person or
property - TORT
2.
a person committing such an act - TORTFEASOR
3.
physical or economic harm or loss - DAMAGE
4.
making public a statement harming someone’s
reputation - DEFAMATION
5.
legal responsibility for an offence - LIABILITY
6.
an interference with private property - TRESPASS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
What is English civil law and how do we
classify it?
What is a tort?
What is the job of the court in tort cases?
What are the available remedies in torts?
What does compensation include?
Can the same act be considered a crime
and be subject to a civil lawsuit?
How do we classify torts?
1.
NUISANCE v. TRESPASS TO LAND
2.
SLANDER v. LIBEL
3.
ASSAULT v. BATTERY
4.
TRESPASS TO CHATTELS v. CONVERSION
5.
CONVERSION v. THEFT
6.
DAMAGE v. DAMAGES
7.
LOSS OF EARNINGS v. LOSS OF EARNING
CAPACITY
Unit 30
Think about the following questions:
 What
 How
 In
is a contract?
does it differ from a regular agreement?
what situations do we enter into
contracts?
A contract can be defined as:
a legally binding agreement between two or
more parties which the courts will enforce
 In
order for an agreement to be considered a
contract it must meet certain essential
requirements.
The four essential elements of contract are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Offer
Acceptance
Consideration
Legal Capacity and Intention
 one
party must have made a binding offer to
another, containing the basic terms of the
agreement
 if
the other party accepts the offer with
all the basic terms a contract is formed
(unqualified acceptance)
 If
the other party tries to negotiate by
suggesting different terms, this is
referred to as a qualified acceptance
 A qualified acceptance does not result in
a contract, but constitutes a counteroffer
 If,
in turn, the other party gives
unqualified acceptance to the counteroffer, a contract is formed
 Possible
issues that may arise:

Was there an unqualified acceptance?

Was the acceptance communicated?
 In
some cases, acceptance does not even
have to be communicated – it is implied
from conduct (e.g. the everyday situation of
buying a product in a retail store)
 Refers
to the promise between the
contracting parties to give each other
something of value

e.g. goods, price paid for the goods, service, etc.
 In
addition, the object of the contract must
not be disapproved by the law
 The
contracting parties must have legal
capacity to contract (poslovna sposobnost)
 Also,
intention to create legal relations must
be present (this can be disputed if there is
evidence to the contrary)
 Contracts
can be made orally, although some
contracts are only effective if made in
writing:




contracts for the sale of land,
contracts for transfer of shares,
hire-purchase contracts
lease contracts, etc.
 Contracts
must be enforceable – if either
party fails to perform the contract, the
courts must be able to enforce it
 Contracts
which do not meet the
requirements can be:
 void
 voidable
 unenforceable
A
void contract is one lacking one of the
essential elements, i.e. a contract is not
formed at all
 Examples:


one or both parties do not have legal capacity
the object of the contract is illegal
A
voidable contract is a contract which has a
defect in its formation and can be cancelled
(avoided) by one of the parties if they choose

Examples:


terms agreed under duress
there was fraud or misrepresentation
 An
unenforceable contract is valid but will
not be enforced by the court
 Examples:

promise to pay a gambling debt

the limitation period for bringing action against the
breaching party has expired (six years after the breach)
 Remedies
available in an action for breach of
contract are:


compensation
specific performance

SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE

court ordering the breaching party to perform the
contract, i.e. to finish building the house
binding offer
terms of contract
acceptance
counter-offer
unqualified acceptance
void contract
qualified acceptance
voidable contract
consideration
unenforceable contract
legal capacity
specific performance