Assessment Task 3 - Legal Writing Task

Background Information
Paul was a regular customer to a local BurgersAreUS restaurant which provides a

self-service facility where customers order from the menu displayed on a touch
screen which is located just inside the entrance. For a customer to select a product
they only have to touch an image or icon showing the product they wish to consume,
and then touch the ‘OK’ button to submit the order. Customers which use the touch
screen are immediately issued a printed ticket which contains an order number and
the price to be paid at the front counter. Customers then present their ticket to the
cashiers who confirm the order appearing on their screens. The customers then pay
for their purchase and they await delivery. Once the order is submitted it goes to the
food preparation area where the meal will be prepared. As of Paul being a very
regular customer at BugrersAreUS he returned to the restaurant and instead of
ordering his normal meal he decided to order the new gourmet burger and hand cut
chips. He placed the order through the self-service ordering system. Following the
payment being processed Paul received the normal printed ticket which included his
order number, order and price. Paul collected his order and found a vacant table and
started to eat his meal. As Paul took his second bite, he struck something hard and
broke a tooth. As he examined the burger, he found a piece of metal that had been
lodged in the burger. Paul alerted the management and demanded compensation for
his anticipated dental repair. The manager expressed regret and directed Paul to the
ticket which he had received which on its reverse side had a clause stating: This
restaurant accepts no responsibility or liability for any injury caused to customers by
consumption of food or drink sold. 1 Paul then exclaimed ‘I’m a consumer and I have
rights!’ 2
Issue
The issue within the case study is while Paul was consuming his burger, he struck
something hard and broke a tooth which after examination resulted in a piece of
metal. Once he presented the issue to the manager, they believed that as there was
a clause stating This restaurant accepts no responsibility or liability for any injury
caused to customers by consumption of food or drink sold. 3 They believed they were not
at fault as of the clause. Paul stated that he was a consumer and which he believed he
1 - VU Collaborate, Case Study Scenario, 2020

4 - Law path Blog, 2020
5 - Australian Consumer Law, 2020
had rights. This results in an issue as who is actually in the right with the law and who is
at fault. In the legislation ‘The Food Act 1984 (Vic) it states that the purpose of the act is
to ensure food for sale is both safe and suitable for human consumption. 4
Rule
In the case of unsafe goods, parties generally intend to go to legal relations. The court
will asses the evidence of the case and each of the views from each party. Under the
Australian Consumer Law Section 54 states that there is a guarantee that goods will be
of acceptable quality.5 Section 54 states that goods must be safe and fit for all purposes.
An example of a case study similar to the BurgersAreUS case study is the context found
in ‘Pharmaceutical Society v Boots’ (1952). In the case Boots operated a self-service
chemist chain which goods which also includes prescribed drugs which were displayed
on the shelves and customers would be selecting items before they had purchased them
at the counter. The issue was that boots infringed the UK Pharmacy and Poisons Act
(1933) by offering drugs without a supervised chemist. In Boots defence he said that the
customer makes the offer at the check-out which there was a chemist present to
supervise the sales. As under the act there was a supervisor in attendance. Held: The
offer was made by the customer when they took the items to the cashier. The offer
would then be accepted or rejected by the cashier. If accepted the contract is then
formed.
Application (Analysis)
The key facts which we know about the case is Paul purchased a burger from
BurgersAreUS which resulted in having a piece of metal and he broke a tooth. He
believes he has rights as of being a consumer, but BurgersAreUS believe they aren’t
liable for the injury as of the clause: This restaurant accepts no responsibility or liability
for any injury caused to customers by consumption of food or drink sold. 7 Which was
placed on the back of the ticket. Paul qualifies as a consumer as under the Australian
Consumer Law it states that a person is a consumer if the price of goods and services
does not exceed $40,000.6 Pauls purchase came to a total of $21.50 which results in him
being a consumer as of the price of his burger. Paul was purchasing a good from
BurgersAreUS, a burger is a good as goods are items that are usually tangible. Goods

should always be fit for the economy and acceptable quality. Goods must be fit for all
purposes for which the good is used for. They must be defects, safe and durable. In this
case Paul’s burger from BurgersAreUS was not of acceptable quality and was unsafe for
the economy as Paul resulting in a broken tooth. The negligence within BurgersAreUS
would have been high. Negligence is when the duty of care is not taken care of and it
results in injury. In this case the employees didn’t take enough time and case to ensure
Pauls burger was safe for him to consume which resulted in him breaking a tooth. The
touch screen inside BurgersAreUS is displayed of the goods for sale which is offering
the goods for sale to customers. This is an invitation to treat, an invitation to treat is
where the action is inviting other parties to make an offer to form a contract. Taking the
ticket to the counter is where Paul is appearing to buy. Accepting the offer is when the
order is placed and gone to the cooking station. The contract is then closed when Paul is
paying for his order. The contract was first formed when the customer walks to the touch
screen as that is offering the customer to form a contract by placing an order. By Paul
breaking a tooth it breaches the contract. This is as all businesses ensure all goods for
be safe for consumption and as the burger wasn’t it breaches the contract.
BurgersAreUS may argue they are not at fault as of Paul being a regular customer and
he should have seen the clause one of the other times he had attended the restaurant
and know it by now. In Paul’s defence he didn’t have notice of the clause, as it being on
the back of the ticket is it not an effective place for a clause to be as of the defendant not
seeing it. With all exclusion clauses the clause needs to be able to be seen. The best
exclusion clause for the business BurgersAreUS would have been for them to have it
displayed on a sign instead of being printed on the ticket which would have been visible
to Paul. This should have been done before Paul entered the contract and he would
have known the consequences. BurgersAreUS at liable for the damage sustained. This
is as the clause wasn’t actually visible to Paul and he couldn’t see the clause before he
entered the contract.
Conclusion
In conclusion, BurgersAreUS are liable for the injury Paul sustained. As of the law
stating that all goods need to be safe for consumption and the clause wasn’t visible at all
times to customers it results in BurgersAreUS are at liability as of not taking enough care

of the product and not following the law. Regardless of the fact they had a clause it
wasn’t visible to the consumer.
Bibliography
Cases
Pharmaceutical Society v Boots (1952)
Legislation
The Food Act 1984 (Vic)
Pharmacy and Poisons Act (1933)
Australian Consumer Law Section 54
Other
Law Path Blog, (Website) <https://lawpath.com.au/blog/what-is-the-food-act-1984-
vic#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20Food%20Act%201984%20(Vic)%3F,Standards
%20Code%20(the%20Code).>
VU Collaborate (Website) < https://vucollaborate.vu.edu.au/>
Australian Consumer Law (Website) < https://consumerlaw.gov.au/>


Assessment Task 3 - Legal Writing Task

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Assessment Task 3 - Legal Writing Task

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Background Information

Paul was a regular customer to a local BurgersAreUS restaurant which provides a

1 - VU Collaborate, Case Study Scenario, 2020

1 - VU Collaborate, Case Study Scenario, 2020

1 - VU Collaborate, Case Study Scenario, 2020

1 - VU Collaborate, Case Study Scenario, 2020

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