Business Law (mng 4104) Recess Period 2020/2021 Introduction to Law
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| Blackpool and Fylde Aero Club Ltd v Blackpool Borough Council
BBC invited tenders to operate an airport, to be submitted by noon on 17 March 1983. The plaintiffs tender was delivered by hand and put in the Town Hall letter box at 11am but the letter box was not cleared by council staff at noon that day as it was supposed to be. The tender was recorded as having been received late and was not considered. The Club brought an action against the council claiming damages for breach of contract, contending that the council has warranted that if a tender was received by the deadline it would be considered and that the council had acted in breach of that warranty. The judge held that the council was liable in damages to the club for breach of contract and negligence. The council appealed, but that appeal was dismissed. Termination of an Offer An offer may be terminated by – Withdrawal; Rejection; Lapse of time; or Death. Withdrawal An offer may be withdrawn at anytime before it is accepted. Such a withdrawal must be communicated to the offeree. It is not sufficient to simply dispose of the subject matter of the intended contract. Case: Dickinson v Dodds The defendant, Mr Dodds, wrote to the complainant, Mr Dickinson, with an offer to sell his house to him for £800. He promised that he would keep this offer open to him until Friday. However, on the Thursday Mr Dodds accepted an offer from a third party and sold his house to them. It was claimed that Mr Dickinson was going to accept this offer, but had not said anything to Mr Dodds because he understood that he had until Friday. Mr Dodds communicated that the offer had been withdrawn through a friend to the complainant. After hearing this, Mr Dickinson went to find the defendant, explaining his acceptance of the offer. The complainant brought an action for specific performance and breach of contract against the defendant. The issue in this case was whether the defendant’s promise to keep the offer open until Friday morning was a binding contract between the parties and if he was allowed to revoke this offer and sell to a third party. The court held that the statement made by Mr Dodds was nothing more than a promise; there was no binding contract formed. He had communicated an offer for buying his house to the complainant and this offer can be revoked any time before there is acceptance. There was no deposit to change this situation. Thus, as there was no obligation to keep the offer open, there could be no ‘meeting of the minds’ between the parties. In addition, the court stated that a communication by a friend or other party that an offer had been withdrawn was valid and would be treated as if it came from the person themselves. Communication of a revocation/withdrawal of an offer need not come from the offeror, once it comes from a reliable source. Rejection When an offer is rejected it is terminated with respect to the person rejecting same but it remains in existence in respect of all other persons to whom it might have been made. It should be noted that a counter-offer takes effect as a rejection of an offer. A mere enquiry however, or the purpose of verifying terms does not operate to nullify the offer. Lapse of Time Offers which are stated to last for a fixed time cannot be accepted after the prescribed time has passed or elapsed. Where an offer contains no express provision limiting the duration it determines after the passage of what, in the court’s view, constituted a reasonable time. Death Pretty self-explanatory, I should think. Download 30.14 Kb. Share with your friends:
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