Table of Contents
Week 1 - Introduction ....................................................................................................... 2
Week 2 – Offer and acceptance ........................................................................................ 5
Week 3 – Intention and Consideration ............................................................................ 18
Week 3 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 28
WEEK 4 – Capacity, Formalities, Interpretation & Good Faith .......................................... 30
Week 4 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 43
Week 5 – Avoidance, Illegality & Defective Consent ........................................................ 46
Week 5 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 63
Week 6 – Termination / Discharge .................................................................................. 66
Week 6 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 78
Week 7 – Remedies ........................................................................................................ 80
Week 7 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 93
EXAM PREP .................................................................................................................... 97
,Week 1 - Introduction
• What is Contract Law and why do we need it?
• To be able to enforce obligations that parties have agreed upon;
Makes the interactions between people more determinative and
therefore more likely to happen (As security encourages people to
develop economy)
• A contract is a legally binding agreement that will be enforced by the
law.
• A contract gives rise to obligations between the parties to the
contract and the failure to perform these obligations gives the right to
a remedy.
• Economic justifications
o To support market economy; to allow market actors to
participate in economic and social life
o It facilitates mutually beneficial exchanges, and so promotes
overall social welfare
o Building market confidence: most exchanges of any
complexity cannot be performed simultaneously. CL
facilitates the making and performing of deferred exchanges.
It provides remedies for breaches of contract
o Secure cooperation in human behavior
o Secure high-risk transactions
o CL provides mechanism for enforcement of agreements
• Contract Law ensures that society can function because agreements
are enforceable
• People make their own agreements (not the State)
2
,Type of Parties Reason for Type of Performance
Performance
- B2B: Business to - A promise in Employment
Business exchange for a Contracts, Agency
- B2C: Business to promise Banking, Carriage by
Consumer → Bilateral Air, Carriage by Sea,
- C2C: Consumer contract Competition Law,
to Consumer → e.g. the sale Construction
of a bike Contracts, Credit &
Security, Employment,
- A promise in Intellectual Property,
exchange for an IT & E-Commerce,
act Insurance,
→ Unilateral International Sale of
contract Goods, Sale of
→ e.g. the Securities, Sale of
promise of a Land, Landlord and
reward for Tenants, Marriage,
information etc.
about a crime
• Party Agreement:
o Standard form contracts
o General terms
• Formal sources of law
o National law (e.g., civil/common law)
o Default rules, facilitative rules, mandatory rules
o Regional Law (e.g., EU law)
o International Law (e.g., CISG)
• Informal sources of law
o Non-state organizations
o Academics
o Non-binding soft law (e.g., Principles, Restatements, DFCR)
3
, • Fundamental Principles of Contract law
• Freedom of Contract
o The autonomy of parties to make the choiced they desire in
contracting
o On Whatever terms (Freedom with regard to content)
o Whenever desired (Freedom to contract or not to contract)
o With Whomever (Freedom to choose the other party)
o BUT there are limits!
• Binding Force
o Agreements lawfully entered into have the force of law
between the parties
o Binding (i.e. there will be a consequence if the contract is
breached)
o Party in default MUST compensate the party not in breach
o UNLESS terms are deemed unfair or prohibited by law
• Informality
o Contracts do not require any particular form
o HOWEVER a particular form may be required by law for
certain contracts to be valid
• Contractual Fairness
o A contract should show procedural fairness
o Procedural fairness = unequal position between the parties is
remedied
o NOT Substantive fairness = the contents of the contract is up
to the parties even if to anybody else the contract seems to
be a ‘bad contract’ for example selling a mansion worth
$5,000,000 for $5
4
Week 1 - Introduction ....................................................................................................... 2
Week 2 – Offer and acceptance ........................................................................................ 5
Week 3 – Intention and Consideration ............................................................................ 18
Week 3 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 28
WEEK 4 – Capacity, Formalities, Interpretation & Good Faith .......................................... 30
Week 4 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 43
Week 5 – Avoidance, Illegality & Defective Consent ........................................................ 46
Week 5 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 63
Week 6 – Termination / Discharge .................................................................................. 66
Week 6 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 78
Week 7 – Remedies ........................................................................................................ 80
Week 7 – Workshop........................................................................................................ 93
EXAM PREP .................................................................................................................... 97
,Week 1 - Introduction
• What is Contract Law and why do we need it?
• To be able to enforce obligations that parties have agreed upon;
Makes the interactions between people more determinative and
therefore more likely to happen (As security encourages people to
develop economy)
• A contract is a legally binding agreement that will be enforced by the
law.
• A contract gives rise to obligations between the parties to the
contract and the failure to perform these obligations gives the right to
a remedy.
• Economic justifications
o To support market economy; to allow market actors to
participate in economic and social life
o It facilitates mutually beneficial exchanges, and so promotes
overall social welfare
o Building market confidence: most exchanges of any
complexity cannot be performed simultaneously. CL
facilitates the making and performing of deferred exchanges.
It provides remedies for breaches of contract
o Secure cooperation in human behavior
o Secure high-risk transactions
o CL provides mechanism for enforcement of agreements
• Contract Law ensures that society can function because agreements
are enforceable
• People make their own agreements (not the State)
2
,Type of Parties Reason for Type of Performance
Performance
- B2B: Business to - A promise in Employment
Business exchange for a Contracts, Agency
- B2C: Business to promise Banking, Carriage by
Consumer → Bilateral Air, Carriage by Sea,
- C2C: Consumer contract Competition Law,
to Consumer → e.g. the sale Construction
of a bike Contracts, Credit &
Security, Employment,
- A promise in Intellectual Property,
exchange for an IT & E-Commerce,
act Insurance,
→ Unilateral International Sale of
contract Goods, Sale of
→ e.g. the Securities, Sale of
promise of a Land, Landlord and
reward for Tenants, Marriage,
information etc.
about a crime
• Party Agreement:
o Standard form contracts
o General terms
• Formal sources of law
o National law (e.g., civil/common law)
o Default rules, facilitative rules, mandatory rules
o Regional Law (e.g., EU law)
o International Law (e.g., CISG)
• Informal sources of law
o Non-state organizations
o Academics
o Non-binding soft law (e.g., Principles, Restatements, DFCR)
3
, • Fundamental Principles of Contract law
• Freedom of Contract
o The autonomy of parties to make the choiced they desire in
contracting
o On Whatever terms (Freedom with regard to content)
o Whenever desired (Freedom to contract or not to contract)
o With Whomever (Freedom to choose the other party)
o BUT there are limits!
• Binding Force
o Agreements lawfully entered into have the force of law
between the parties
o Binding (i.e. there will be a consequence if the contract is
breached)
o Party in default MUST compensate the party not in breach
o UNLESS terms are deemed unfair or prohibited by law
• Informality
o Contracts do not require any particular form
o HOWEVER a particular form may be required by law for
certain contracts to be valid
• Contractual Fairness
o A contract should show procedural fairness
o Procedural fairness = unequal position between the parties is
remedied
o NOT Substantive fairness = the contents of the contract is up
to the parties even if to anybody else the contract seems to
be a ‘bad contract’ for example selling a mansion worth
$5,000,000 for $5
4
