Unit .

15, Exercise 10
Role cards
CASE 1: LAWYER
Student A Information on antl.eompetitive activity
Unit 5, Exercl$e 22 The formaUon of a cartel refers to the making 01 an
agreement amongst compeUtors in the same industry to
act together in order to limit compelJlJon and to maximise
Your chent wants to buy five bottling machines. to be
profits. thiS includes such actMues as fIXIng pnces.
delivered Immediately. The price IS to Include a frve-year
shanng markets and limiting productIon. among others.
seMCe plan and full guarantee. The budget IS € 1m. and
DISCUSSing or exchanging informatIOn With actual or
)'OUr chent wants to be able to spread the payments.
potential compeUtors regarding such matters should be
stnctly a'o'Otded. The formatIOn of a cartel IS considered
one of the most seriOus offences under compeUIJon law.
Unit 6. Exercise 25

CASE ALE 1
ROLE: Client (Allied Industries)
Parties to contract: Allied Industries (Buyer) & Bennet
Construction Co (Contractor)
Reason for consulting lawyer: Can Allied recover
damages? What remedies are available?
Fads of the case:
v Allied contracted with Bennet Construction Co to
bUild a new factory.
...... Contract duly signed.
..., During construction, the buildmg collapsed once due
to unforeseen strong winds.
\,.< later. the buildmg collapsed a second tIme due to
what Bennet calls "defects in the soil'.
..... After second collapse. Bennet refused 10 rebuild.
.... No liquidated damages clause in COfItract.
CASE 2: CLIENT
Description of the sItuation
You are an executive of a construction company
specialising in building residential housing estates. You
have two main competitors in the market. Three large
new housing estates are to be built ne~t year in different
locations in your region. Your two competitors have
approached you to suggest that the three of you agree to
share the lhree construction projects equally. so that
each firm is certain to hallt! work but does not
overextend ItS capabilities by working on two or three big
prOjects at once. The plan is for each constructiOn
company to take a tum at submitting the lowest-priced
bid. You told your competltors that you would like to think
about It first. You are warned !hat thiS plan IS Illegal and
don't know wt\at to do.

CASE FlLE 2
ROLE: Lawyer
Introduction: greer client: explain what WIll happen In
interVIew: dISCUSS cirr:vmstances of Intf'f\ilew
Getting an overview of the <:8se: What is the nature of
the dispute?
Establishing fa<:ts and <:hronology of events: What
happened? Signed agreement? were there any
obligations imposed upon Franklin In the letter of intent?
What obligations were imposed? Do you have a copy of
the letter?
Identifying Issues, developing and supporting It theory:
Main Issue: the intent of the parties to be bound based
on the language in the letter 01 intent
Problem: letter of intent in broad terms only expresses
an agreement to agree to further terms
ConclUding the interview: assess (he case: Court might
hold that the letter of intent is binding. At the very least.
it imposed an obligation upon Franklin to act in good
faith·. ThIS they failed to do. Final outcome will depend
on the court's interprelallon of the wording and whether
the parlles really did intend to be bound. There IS lillie
chance of forcing franklin to sell. The loss Incurred by
BIBEC, If any. is very difficult to measure and highly
speculatIVe. II a court were to award damages. It would
most likely be In the nature of expectancy damages. If
any. From an economIC perspectIVe. It mIght be WIse for
BIBEe to learn trom the expeoence and move on.
ConcluSIon: describe next moves: refer to next contact;
say goodbye
• This applies only to the USA. where good faith is

E
Implied in every contract. The opPOsite is true In. Inter
alia, England.

A"we< ke,