THE LANGUAGE OF CONTRACT LAW A CONTRACT CASE Exercise 1 Diana Willams is a lawyer. Today she has a new cllent. Diana's notes from the meeting with her new clfent are below. Look at the headings in the biue box below. Read Diana's notes and give each paragraph the correct heading. General information What | need to do Client details Facts of the case New client notes a Name: Charlotte Hewittson ‘Address: Chatsworth School of English, Braeburn House, Chatsworth, CH3 25 Telephone: 0771 883567 Appointment: 10 July, 2pm b Charfotte Hewittson has a language schoo! in Chatsworth, Her school teaches English to foreign students. On the last Thursday of every month Charlotte takes her students for a day in London. They visit attractions like Madam Tussaud’s and Buckingham Palace and they eat lunch in Hyde Park. Charlotte uses a local bus company to take her students to London. ‘The name of the bus company is Chatsworth CitiTravel. Charlotte first used this bus company six years ago. She trusts them and has @ good working relationship with them, However, Charlotte never signs a contract with them. She always books the bus by phone. © On 2 June Charlotte telephoned the bus company to book the bus as usual for the last Thursday of the month, Unfortunately it was lunchtime and no one was in the office. Chariotte left a message on the answering machine to make her usual booking, The bus company secretary called Chariotte back, but Charlotte was teaching her class. The secretary left a message for Charlotte, The message was, ‘We are very sory Charlotte, but we can’t give you a bus on the last Thursday of this month. We will send one on Friday instead. Call us back immediately if this is not OK. If you don't call us our driver wil be there on Friday’ Charlotte needed a bus for Thursday, not Friday. So, she used another bus company. She forgot to call Chatsworth CitiTravel to say that Friday was no good. The bus arrived on. Friday moming, Now Chatsworth CitiTravel wants the cost of hiring the bus. This is £360. a I need to advise Charlotte about paying CitiTravel the £360 that they are demanding from her. My advice depends on Charlotte's situation with CitiTravel. Ifshe has a contract with them she is obliged to pay. I there is no contract with them then there is no obligation to pay. Cates Mason & Rosemary Akins 2007 n opepuros/ve enExercise 2 Read the information in Exercise 1. again and decide if the following statements are true or false. Charlotte takes her students to London every Thursday. Tue False b Charlotte's students are not English Tue False © Charlotte signed 2 contract with the bus company six years ago. Te False d Charlotte agreed to use a CitiTravel bus on Friday instead of Thursday. True False @ The cost of hiring the CitiTravel bus is £360. True False Before you look at the next exercise decide if Charlotte has made a contract with Chatsworth CitiTravel. Yes No Maybe Exercise 3 Diana Williams's opinion about Charlottes legal problem is in the box in Exercise 4. You will need the following words to complete the text. Match each word with the definition provided. (=) Offer means... ——_ ..@ person who makes an offer. (1) ~ 5 .a decision of a judge in an earlier case that other judges \ ‘must follow if the circumstances of the situation are the same or similar. (2) a Acceptance means. b Offeror means... ..2 proposal, the terms of which are certain, © Precedent means... that you must do something. It is necessary to do it. (3) d_ Case means. _a legal agreement made between two or more parties. (4) ..an unconditional agreement to what is proposed by the Contract means.. Giher pany.) f Obliged means. .2 set of arguments in a situation that might become legal ors already legal in nature. (6) Help desk What do these words mean? unconditional - absolute, without any doubts or parties - the people who have entered into a suggestions of change. contract or the people involved in a dispute. ‘no good ~ an informal way of saying not suitable or not acceptable. “ ® Catsne Mason & Rosemary tins 2007Exercise 4 Here is what Diana thinks about Charfotte's legal problem. Complete the text using the highlighted words from Exercise 3. | Diana's opinion Does Charlotte have a (a) In some legal systems around the world the answer is ‘Yes’ and in some it is ‘No’. Many lawyers will say its difficult to reach a definite conclusion. According to English law, Charlotte probably does not have a contract with the bus company. Because she has no contract with the bus company she is not (b) Because there is a (c) with Chatsworth CitiTravel? in English law that says (d) to pay the £360. ata my grounds for condluing hat Chart nes probaiy not made a contact wth Crave? | ofan e) cannot be made by silence. Acceptance must be actively communicated to the ® . In this (g) ‘Therefore there is no contract. MORE ABOUT PRECEDENT Charlotte did not accept the bus company's offer. We can say that Charlotte does not have a contract because there is @ precedent case in English law that says that acceptance of an offer cannot be made by silence. To make a contract Charlotte needed to call CitiTravel and accept their offer. Exercise 1 You are now going to read more about precedent. The most important words are in the key vocabulary. Read the text below. Decide if the statements on the next page are true or false. Key vocabulary © precedent © courts of first instance ri © common law Precedent comes from what is called the common law. The common law is one of the main sources of law in England and the USA. The common law developed after the year 1066, when the whole of England developed the same body of laws instead of each area having its own local laws ~ that is why itis called ‘common’. The common law covers both criminal and civil court decisions. As judges’ decisions were written down, often described as ‘recorded’, in law reports that were common to the whole country, the idea of precedent developed. This means that when a Judge decides the result of a particular case he or ‘she must pay attention to the principles of law that come from an earlier case dealing with the same or © Catnenne Mason & Rosary As 2007 decidendi © recorded © obiter dictum © binding © distinguishable similar points. In this way, a statement of law can become binding upon later judges and can become the law for everyone to follow. When does a particular decision, or pronouncement, by a judge become binding upon later judges? There are two important deciding factors: 1. Judges in courts at the lowest level of decision- making, often called courts of first instance, do ot normally create binding precedents. It is the higher courts that issue binding rulings and the lower courts must follow them. 2. The pronouncement must form what is called the ratio decidendi of the case. This is Latin for ‘the reasoning behind the decision’. This is the part of 6 wonepenog/ve wunUnit 34/Foundation the judge's words that provides the legal reasoning for his or her decision. Everything else the judge ays is called obiter dictum. Obiter dictum is something that is not really necessary for the legal basis for the decision. Only the ratio decidendi is binding A later judge dealing with a similar case must decide which precedents are binding. He or she may decide that a precedent suggested by a lawyer iseither: relevant to the case before him or her, or distinguishable from the present case, which means that the case is so different that the precedent does not apply in this particular situation. Many countries use a codified system. However, ‘many people believe that the common law is more practical than a codified system because it was developed from real Ife situations that were presented to the courts @ Common law and civil law mean exactly the same thing. Tue False b_ Recorded can mean written as well as recorded on disk. Tue False ¢ _Alljudges can make new precedents Tue False d__ Everything a judge says forms part ofthe precedent. Tue False © Sometimes a judge wil say that a precedent suggested by a lanyer The False is not relovant. | Help desk | What do these words mean? a source of law ~ a place where law comes from, for example, a civil code. a principle of law ~ an accepted idea that forms part of the law. a factor — something that is important to consider when making a decision. a body of laws ~a collection of laws. All of them together. a pronouncement — an old-fashioned word meaning a judge’s words at the end of a case ving his or her decision. relevant — of significance or importance to a particular situation, Exercise 2 ‘Choose one of the words or phrases from the key vocabulary in Exercise 1 to complete these sentences. a. In England and the USA much of the law is based on the decisions made by judges. This source of law 'scalled the law. b A judge's decision that forms the law for future cases is known as a © The important part of a judge’s pronouncement when he or she gives a decision in a precedent case is. ot the obiter dictum but the d_ Once a precedent is established it forms part of the law and is upon lower courts. The lower courts in the English system are called cours of first 6 cateExercise 3 Diana Wiliams is sending a short letter to Charlotte Hewittson about her case. The letter is in the wrong order. Put the parts of the letter into the correct order. There is an example at the beginning, which is the start of the letter. Williams & Co 1 Dublin Square Chatsworth CHA 10x Mrs € Hewittson 4 July 20%% Chatsworth School of Engtish Braeburn House Chatsworth cH 28) (a) As | explained to you, the relevant precedent says that acceptance of an offer cannot be ‘made by silence and you have told me that you did not call them. | will write to CitiTravel today on your behalf and make our opinion on this matter clear to them. (@) | enclose my account for your attention and hope that this matter is now at an end. If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact me. (©) Diana Williams. (d) Your dispute with Chatsworth CitiTravel (e} | am pleased to confirm to you the advice that I gave you when you visited my office. In my opinion, you did not form a contract with CitTravel as you did not accept their offer to provide you with a bus on Friday 28 June. (f) Thank you very much for coming to see me yesterday in connection with the above matter. (®) Dear Ms Hewittson (h) My advice is then to do nothing more about this matter and wait to see if CitTravel respond to our letter. 4 Yours sincerely DW Me @ 3 ” o © a ®) @ Help desk What do these words mean? account — when the word is used in this way it means a bill or an invoice that someone must pay. nee Mason & sem Atkins 2007 n owepunog/ve aunUnit 24/Foundation THE ELEMENTS OF A CONTRACT Itis a general principle of English and American contract law that all of the necessary elements must be present to make contract. An element is a fundamental part of something. This is true of all contracts, both written and unwritten, Exercise 1 Read the story below and decide if you think the two people concemed, Charles and Maria, have a ccontract. In the space provided, write why you think this situation is contractualinon-contractual. Think about the elements of a contract in your country. Matia is Charles's grliend. The relationship started eight months ago. Charles asks Maria if she ‘would like to go to Italy with him for a skiing holiday. Maria agrees. Charles pays for the holiday on his credit card, The cost is £2500 in total. Howaver, a week before the holiday Maria meets Will. ‘She calls Charles and explains that she is now Wil’ girlfriend and she doesn’t want the holiday. Charles is very angry. He demands £1250 from Maria and says she has to pay. She says she thinks the holiday was a present from him, Charles says the holiday was not a present because: Maria has a great job and makes more money than him. | Do they have a contract? Why/Why not? My reasons: We will return to this question later to check your conclusion. First, we need to look at the vocabulary that you need to be able to talk about the elements of a contract according to English and American law. Exercise 2 The English courts have an objective test to decide if a contract exists in a particular situation or not. The court looks fora lst of things that are the necessary elements of a contract. Look at the words in the box and circle those that you think might be one of the elements according to English lav. Then look at the explanation on the next page to see if you are correct. subject offer motivation proposal object ‘topic acceptance value consideration receipt intention price % Ccatrene Ntaton& Roseman Ans 2007The elements of an English contract are from the common law. They might be different from the elements of a contract in other counties. The elements of an English contract are: © offer © acceptance © consideration « intention. ‘The other words in the blue box are not elements of a contract according to the common law. However, they are all words that lawyers from civil code systems sometimes use. If you use the other words in the box you may have to explain what you mean to a lawyer from the common law system. Exercise 3 Read the information below about the elements of a contract. Complete the text below by writing the correct element of a contract after its description. To form a binding contract according to Engish law, four elements must be present. (© The first of these is where one of the parties makes a proposal to the other party. The proposal is on absolutely certain terms. For example, ‘I wl sell you my car cleaning business on 4. January for £20,000’, This proposal is called an (a) © In order to make the contract valid, the parties must exchange something. Each of them must give something to the other, such as money, work or goods. In the above example one party exchanges a car cleaning business in retum for £20,000. Each gives something to the other. If one party promises the other a gift (in return for nothing) then in a situation like this the parties do not usually have a contract. So, another element of a contract is (b) © The courts look at the relationship between the two parties. The courts decide if the parties really want to ‘make things legally binding in this particular situation or not. If| agree to do some work for my mother or my father did | really mean to make the agreement legal? Did | have (¢) 2 © Itis absolutely necessary that a person accepting an offer does not change the terms of the original offer. For example, if | say, “I will buy your car cleaning business. But not for £20,000 as you ask. | will give you £15,000", then there is no binding contract because there was no (d) s Exercise 4 Go back to your reasons for deciding whether or not Charles and Maria have a contract. Can you see all four elements? What do you think a judge from your country would say? It is one of those cases where itis difficult to give a definite answer. My notes: © catneme Mason & Rosemary Atkins 2007 9 ‘uonepunog ye wn,Unit 38/Foundation ‘THE END OF AN OFFER ‘Sometimes a contract cannot be made because the offer comes to an end before it can be accepted. In other words, the offer is no longer open to acceptance. Lawyers refer to the people who make and receive the offer as follows: © The person who makes an offer is called the offeror. © The person who receives the offer is called the offeree. Exercise 1 Jumbled words. In each of the situations described below the letters of one of the words are mixed up. Put the letters in the correct order to spell the words. The first letter of each word is there for you. Then give the name of the offeror and the offeree in each situation. a. David Jackson has a new job. When he starts work the company, DDS Fumiture Ltd, offers him shares in the company at a special, cheap price. A year after he starts the job he decides to accept the affer to buy the shares. His employer tells him he cannot accept the offer. This is because the offer has L {ELPDAS). It means too much time has passed. The offeror is The offeree is b Julie Smith buys a new computer. She advertises her old one for sale for £50. Alex Harrison calls and ‘suggests paying Julie £30. Julie refuses. Alex then suggests £40 but Jule refuses. Julie says the reason is that Alex made a © (TREUNOC-ORFFE). The legal effect is to cance! the original offer. The offeror is The offeree is ‘¢ Jamie Hammond decides to sell his car to Ben Wardle. Ben says, ‘No thank you’. The offer was R_____(CJEDETER). The legal effect is to cancel the offer. The offeror is The offeree is d_ Mia Thomas decides to sell her house. She offers the house for sale at a price of £190,000. Andrea Stewart decides to buy it. However, before Andrea can accept the offer, Mia changes her mind and decides to keep the house. The offer is R (KVDREEO) oF in other words, Mia withdraws the offer. The offeror is ‘The offeree is 0 © catnnne Mason & Rosemary Athns 2007WHAT IS CONSIDERATION? Exercise 1 Read the following text. It fs about consideration in contract law. Choose the correct word from the text to complete the sentences below. Offer and acceptance are not enough to make a contract. There also needs to be two other elements. They are: intention to create a legal relationship, and consideration. What is consideration? Consideration is what one party promises to give to, or promises to do for, the other party. Both parties need to provide consideration to make a contract valid. There are many precedents in English law where judges decide what is good consideration and what is not. Consideration is usually one of the following things: a promise to do something € promise not to do something in the future (sometimes called forbearance) goods services money. A promise of a gift or of a free service does not usually create a contractual situation according to English law. Ths is because one of the parties has not provided consideration. To make a contract both parties must give something or do something for the other in a kind of exchange. A lawyer describes this by saying that consideration must be reciprocal. It must travel in both directions. if consideration is a good thing for a party and is posite in nature, we say that he or she has gained a benefit. Receiving @ payment of money would be an example of this. However, sometimes the consideration provided is negative in nature. Let's imagine an employee agrees in his or her ‘employment contract not to start a business for two years after the contract terminates. He or she has promised not to do something in the future. We say that this party has suffered a detriment. | promise to tidy a friend's garden because she is il | don't want to be paid. However, | am busy and | don't tidy the garden for her. is our agreement a contract? No, it isn’t. Why not? It is not a contract because one of the parties to the agreement has Not provided consideration. Consideration is a fundamental principle of English contract law. ‘a As well as offer, acceptance and consideration, the parties to a contract need to have to create a legal relationship. b To make a legally binding contract both parties must consideration, © To find out what is good consideration for a contract I need to check the relevant to ‘see what judges say about it. dA promise not to do something in the future can be good consideration for a contract. Lawyers usually call this. e Both parties to the contract must provide consideration, in other words it must be f If lreceive something positive under the contract | gain a & Fl lose something under the contract | suffer a a ‘wonpanos ye HnUnit 38/Foundation Exercise 2 Contract wordsearch. Look in the grid below and find the following words. The words can be found in any direction. acceptance offeror source consideration detriment case binding obiter revoke precedent ratio benefit contract Intend offer factor rpu]t Flepyeyalayriye cl x]e pP{r{of]t]lc]a]lr a@ajctc fc] e)) e;K|T]Ala plale R[cf[uflvfefc]x s|slF efe|t[sfofr|{t efefec cfofule]el[x«]R p/tfo QgQlelrF{[njifule Ljals o{n[mle]tfo]s H[s|t c{tf[ofrf[elrli ofojfe n{[tlevufr[frlyn R[alT Fla{t]tf/afe]o ofelT R{/[v[rjaf{t[rRia sfo|fc efr{[ajt]ifo]n F]s|o n[t[t]fa]s]rRrir FJ A|R sfifalefiftle CONTRACT AND STATUTE Exercise 1 ‘Much modem contract law comes from statute. You are going (0 read about statute. Read the text and write the highlighted words in the text next to the meanings given on the next page. The common law is one source of contract aw. © The House of Commons Another is statute. This is the most powerful of Parliament's two chambers. These chambers are usually known ‘as Houses. The House of Commons has 639 members, who are elected when the whole county votes in a general election. These A statute passes through three stages: members of the House are called MPs. A statute A statute is a law made by Parliament. We can say that judges make the common law but Parliament creates statutes. 2 Cather Mason & Rosemary ting 2007begins in this House. The House of Commons has only 427 seats. When itis full a lot of people have to stand! © The House of Lords This is Parliament's second chamber. Its main function is to check new laws, which were proposed in the House of Commons. The House of Lords has 675 members who come from a variety of backgrounds. This House does not hhave the power to stop a proposed statute from becoming law, but it can slow it down. Some. members of this House are not elected. These members get their seats from the monarch (the King or Queen) on the advice of the Prime Minister. © The Monarchy ‘The monarch has to give permission before a new statute becomes law. This is because the King or Queen is the Head of State. This permission is called giving the ‘Royal Assent’. However, the monarch always accepts the advice of his or her government. In fact, the monarch does not even have the full text of the proposed statute, only the title of it. The last monarch to reject a proposed statute was Queen Anne, who died in 1745, There are three words for the law made by Parliament. They refer to the same thing, They are: © Statute. This is often called statutory law © Acts of Parliament © Legislation. This js the collective word for all statutes. Example: The law that comes from the decisions of judges and is based on precedent. Common law The main law-making body in England, b_ Members of Parliament. © Alaw made in Parliament. d_ Chosen by the people to be a political representative, @ Aword meaning all of the laws made by Parliament, f Asystem of choosing new Members of Parliament. All of the people have a vote. Exercise 2 Read the text about statute carefully and decide if the following statements are true or false. a Astatute is the same thing as an Act of Parliament. b Astatute always starts in the House of Lords. ¢ Members of the House of Commons are elected but some members of ‘the House of Lords are not. d__ The King or Queen often stop a new statute if they disagree with it. @ Legislation is another word for a single statute. © caterne Mason & Rosemary Atkin 2007 Tue False Tue False Tue False Te False Te False 8Exercise 3 Look at this very short text. It is about a statute. Look at the words that are highlighted in the text. Without using a dictionary decide if each word is a verb or a noun. The Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 (UCTA) is an example of a statute that deals with contract law. It covers transactions between people. ‘This statute places some restrictions upon the contract terms people can agree to. One particular part of it deals with the ways in which people that are selling something can limit their liability for negligence. Verb Noun Exercise 4 Here are the definitions of the highlighted words in Exercise 3. Put the correct word into each sentence to complete the definition aa | a piece of business, such as buying or selling something, b To something is to deal with, or include something. cA is a limit thatis put on something, dfyou have for something it means that you have legal responsibility fori. @ The of @ contract are its contents. It means the conditions and duties that you agree to perform when you enter into the contract. f To a restriction upon someone is to put limits upon what they are allowed to do. Exercise 5 Using the words ‘term’ and ‘terms’. These can be confusing words because they can have more than ane ‘meaning when lawyers use them. Read the explanation about the meaning of these words. In the sentences opposite, decide which of the four options you need to complete the sentence. Then identity which meaning of the word is the correct one. Terms 1. terms: All ofthe duties and conditions contained in a contract. Example sentence: She explained the terms of the contract to her client. 2 terms: Words and expressions. Example sentence: A lawyer sometimes uses legal terms thet his client might not understand, Term 1. term: A single duty or condition contained in a contract. Itis sometimes called a provision. Example sentence: There isa teim in this Contract that forbids you to sell goods in Australia or New Zealand, 2 term: The duration of a contract. Example sentence: The term of this contract is one year from the date of signing.Example: The _term_of this contract is one year, commencing on the date of signature. (_term 2 a Some of the ‘any more. ( b For the entire information to any third party. ( ) © There is usually a contract in case of disputes. ( _) d_ When you sign a contract you agree to all of the Help desk What do these words mean? third party — someone who is not one of the ‘two main parties involved in a contract or a particular situation. jurisdiction — legal power over a geographical ‘area or people. READING CONTRACT LAW Exercise 1 used in this letter are very old-fashioned and lawyers don't really use them of this contract the Employee shall not disclose any confidential in most commercial contracts dealing with the jurisdiction of the that it contains. ( condition — something that you have to do in ‘order for something else to happen. entire ~ complete or whole, disclose — tell. You are now going to read more about contract faw. The most important words are in the key vocabulary below, Decide if the statements an the next page are true or false. Key vocabulary contrary © under duress ‘comply with contract under seal enforceable © donation sum void ‘consent capacity to contract voluntarily deed party in breach injured party discharged breach In general, businesses are free to enter into whatever contracts they agree between themselves, However, business contracts must not be contrary to (against) case law of to Acts of Parliament such as the Unfair Contract Terms Act. If the contents of a contract, usually called the terms and conditions, do not comply with the law, meaning they don't follow the law correctly, then a judge will probably decide that the contract is vold. Void means ‘empiy’. Its not an enforceable contract. It is not a contract that a court will recognise as valid (caters Mason & Rosemer Atkins 2007 Itis a general rule that both parties to the contract must have capacity to contract. This means that when a person signs a contract they must be: old enough to consent (say yes) to it; and not mentally il; and not drunk or using drugs. It is another general rule that both parties must. ‘enter into the contract voluntarily. This means that they must have signed it freely and not under duress (pressure), 85Unit 34/Foundation ‘A contract may be: © written; or © oral (spoken); or © in the form of a deed. A deed is sometimes called a contract under seal. Itis.a special contract that is legal even though one of the parties has not provided consideration. A promise of a gift or donation for example, can be a valid contract if the agreement takes the form of a a Acts of Parliament concerning contract law are to protect the public, and they do not affect businesses at all. b Ifa contract is void it wll not be enforceable by a court. If sign a contract after drinking a whole bottle of wine and three beers the contract might not be valid In very special circumstances it is possible to have a contract where deed. An oral contract is binding according to English law. Even if @ contract involves a large sum ‘of money, itis stil valid if itis not written, When a contract comes to an end we say that the contract is discharged. If the contract is discharged because one of the parties does not fulfil their obligations itis called a breach. If one parly breaches the contract the injured party can sue the party in breach. The injured party is the claimant and the party in breach is the defendant. one of the parties does not provide consideration. The injured party and the party in breach are the same person. Exercise 2 Tue False Tue False True False. True False Tue False Choose a word or phrase from the key vocabulary in Exercise 1 to complete the sentences below. a You are only 16 years old so you do not have to contract. b Acontract that is valid even though one of the parties has not provided consideration usually takes the form of a contract under © We made an oral contract and even though it involves a very large ot need to be in writing to be valid d_ There are various ways in which a contract can be or breach. @ Ifa contract is binding then it is, You did not fulfil your obligations under this contract and as the sue you for breach. Did you sign the contract, One of the terms of this contract is. not valid, i If promise to make a the agreement takes the form of a deed. J Any private agreement must of money it does , including performance of all duties bya court | have the right to ‘or was it signed under duress? to the Sale of Goods Act and the term is therefore ‘0 a person or an organisation itis a legally binding contract it with all relevant law, including Acts of Parliament © Cathe Nason & Rosemary ns 2007GOING TO COURT The following exercises are about dispute, This dispute is about a breach of contract. Exercise 1 Read the facts and decide if the statements that follow are true or false. Dinter Hie orate ene ales Onarv a ete sacar | cars in Chatsworth. Many of the cars that John Oliver sells previously belonged to a taxi company. Two months ago, John Oliver sold a car to a woman named Susan Hicks. Susan Hicks paid for the | car by cheque. The cost was £1000. The car was not a good one. It stopped working twice in the first week that Susan bought it. Susan was angry and went to John Oliver's office. Susan asked John Oliver to give her a different car. He refused. Susan telephoned her bank and cancelled the cheque. John Oliver did not receive any money. The car is at Susan's hause. The car will not start. ‘Susan telephoned John Oliver last week and said he can collect his broken car any time he wants to, John Oliver refused. He decided to sue Susan Hicks for breach of contract on the grounds that Yesterday Susan received a claim from Chatsworth County Court, which is the local civil court. John Oliver is claiming £4000 from her for the car, plus a court fee of £60. His total claim is £1060. ‘a_John Oliver owns a taxi business in Chatsworth. Tue Fal Susan Hicks did not pay in cash for the car she bought from John Oliver. Tue False ‘© Susan Hicks telephoned John Oliver to ask him for a different car. Tue False d_John Oliver collected the car from Susan's house last week. Tue False e _John Oliver is not claiming any interest on the £1000 he says Susan Tue False owes to him. Exercise 2 ‘Susan now receives a claim from Chatsworth County Court. There are some words in the claim form that she does not understand. Her questions are below. Match her questions with the correct answer. a What is a claimant? lt means to start an action against someone in the civil court. (1) b What is a defendant? It is something that you suffer as a direct result of the breach of contract. (2) © What does sue mean? lis something thet you suffer as an indirect result of the breach of contract. (3) d What does defective mean? Itis the person who starts the legal action. (4) e What is direct loss? Itis the person who the claimant is making a claim against. (5) f What is consequential loss? It means faulty — not working correctly. (6) Catnexne Mason & Rosemary At a7 puna veUnit 3A/Foundation Exercise 3 Use the highlighted words from Exercise 2 to complete these sentences. a I must return the goods that you delivered to my shop yesterday as they are all and | cannot sell things that do not work properly. b_ Mr Wilkes breached the contract because he delivered the goods two weeks late. As an immediate result ofthis | suffered a loss of £2000 because I could not sell the goods to the buyer who was waiting for them. © You must pay what you owe me at once or | will you in the County Court 4d When the claim form was served upon the he decided to pay the money that he owed to the claimant. @ The loss that you suffered as a breach of the contract was not a direct result of the breach. A court will say that this is loss, £ Several people owe money to my business and as a result | am the in three different cases in the County Court. 38 © catnanne Mason & Rosemary thins 2007UNIT 3A VOCABULARY CHECK punoa/¥ un, These are the important words that you have studied in Unit 3A. You should make sure that you know these words before you go on to Unit 38. acceptance injured party Act of Parfiament intention benefit issue binding jurisdiction body of laws fighitaios breech labiity cone Member of Partiament (MP) 8 monarchy claimant Saracen obiter dictum aan obliged coneition offer consent offeree consequential loss rferor consideration parties contract party in breach contract under seal place contrary precedent cours of fst instance principle of law cover pronouncement ee propose detective ratio decidendi defendant reciprocal detriment recorded direct loss relevant discharged restrictions disclose revoke dispute senior court distinguishable source of law donation statute duress sue duty sum elected term enforceable denne vr tire party factor transaction forthe unconditionally general election wail House of Commons void House of Lords voluntary © catenne Mason & Roseman Akins 2007 8