BLAW 2301 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Punitive Damages, Steam Beer, Stephen Curry
25 Jun 2018
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BLAW UNIT 2 REVIEW
CH 11: CONTRACTS
For a contract to be enforceable must have Seven factors:
1)ch12- Offer: make an offer.
2)ch12- Acceptance: offeree must accept the offer.
3)ch13- Consideration: a bargain and exchange + measurable benefit to both parties (value).
4)ch14- Legality: the contract is for lawful purpose not anything illegal.
5)ch15- Capacity: must be adults with a sound mind
6)ch15- Consent: Certain kinds of trickery and force can prevent the formation of a contract.
7)ch16- Writing (for some contracts)
Other important issues:
CH 17: Third-Party Interests
CH 18: Performance and Discharge
CH 19: Remedies
Types of Contracts:
–Bilateral Contract: A promise made in exchange for another promise. The moment we
exchange promises we have a contract.
–Unilateral Contract: One party makes a promise that the other party can accept only by doing
something.
Ex: Lost dog found and returned to owner for some $/reward. "promise in exchange for
performance.”
–Executory Contract: A contract agreement in which one or more parties has not yet
fulfilled its obligations
–Executed Contract: An agreement in which all parties have fulfilled their obligations.
–Express contract: An agreement with all the important terms explicitly stated, oral or written.
Ex: Mow the lawn example for one week. But not an express contract for everywknd-
contract was implied.
–Implied contract: An agreement in which the words and conduct of the parties indicate that
they intend an agreement.
Ex: If there is a implied contract- then yes the owner must pay for the mowed lawn. But
the following wknd if kid still mows it without asking then there is no obligation to pay.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Promissory Estoppel and Quasi-Contracts (Only used if there is no contract in place!):
•In promissory estoppel cases: for an injured plaintiff in a case with no valid contract, when
the plaintiff can show a promise, reasonable reliance, AND injustice.
MUST show:
–The defendant made a promise knowing that the plaintiff would likely rely on it;
–The plaintiff did rely on the promise; and
–The only way to avoid injustices is to enforce the promise
Ex: pastor requests for new altar. Person promises 10k for it. If there was consideration
"bargain and exchange + value" then thts a contract. Without the consideration it's only
called a pledge/gift/ donation so not a contract. But it's promissory estoppel if plaintiff
(pastor) can show there was a promise, he relied on it and there was injustice.
•In quasi-contract cases: the defendant received a benefit from the plaintiff.
MUST SHOW:
–The plaintiff gave some benefit to the defendant;
–The plaintiff reasonably expected to be paid for the benefit and the defendant knew
this; and
–The defendant would be unjustly enriched if he did not pay
The damages awarded are called quantum meruit
Ex: lawn mowers come and mow the wrong house. No express contract, implied
contract, no promissory estoppel but there is quasi contract.
Types of Agreement:
–Valid contract: Satisfies all of the law’s 7 requirements
–Unenforceable agreement: Occurs when the parties intend to form a valid bargain, but
a court declares that some rule of law prevents enforcing it. Must follow all the 7 valid contract
requirements.
–Voidable contract: An agreement that MAY be terminated by one of the parties. 17 yr olds,
mentally impaired r ppl tht may be part of voidable contracts.
–Void agreement: An agreement that neither party can enforce, because that bargain is
illegal OR one of the parties had no legal authority to make it
Uniform commercial code:
– UCC is not law in and of itself. Made contract more uniform but not identical or
federal. Meaning how to govern a specific good can be set by the UCC but states do not HAVE
to follow it.
– governs the sale of goods. “Goods” means anything movable, except for money, securities
and certain legal rights.
-ex: A contract for the sale of 10,000 sneakers is governed by the UCC; a contract for
the sale of a condominium in Marina del Rey is governed by the California common law.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
CH 12 OFFERS AND ACCEPTANCE
Making offers:
Parties can form a contract only if
–Understood each other and
–Intended to reach an agreement
–One side must make an offer and the other must make an acceptance
•Courts make objective assessments when evaluating offers and acceptances.
Ex: It will look at the handshake objectively, deciding how a reasonable person would
interpret her words and conduct.
Offer:
Offer: An act or statement that proposes definite terms and permits the other party to create a
contract by accepting those terms.
Two questions determine whether a statement is an offer
1) Do the offeror’s words and actions indicate an intention to make a bargain?
2) Are the terms of the offer reasonably definite? (The terms of the offer must be definite)
–Cases: Toyota vs toy-yoda, terms not definite enough for it to be an enforceable
contract.
Ex: Ex: Zachary says to Sharon, “Come work in my English language center as a teacher. I’ll
pay you $800 per week for a 35-hour week, for six months starting Monday.” If Sharon accepts,
the parties have a contract that either one can enforce.
•Offeror: The person who makes the offer (zac)
•Offeree: The person to whom an offer is made (Sharon)
What isn’t an offer:
Invitation to bargain is not an offer. Price quote itself is not an offer. But when u
negotiate tht quote then it becomes an offer.
1)Invitations to Bargain: Not an offer
Ex: “There is no way I could sell the condo for less than $150,000.” merely an invitation
to negotiate. not promising to sell the condo for $150,000 or for any amount.
2)Price Quotes: Generally not an offer
Ex: leviton vs litton. Leviton claimed that under the contract it had no liability. But the
court held that the price letter was not an offer. It was a request to receive an offer.
Thus the contract ultimately formed did not include Leviton’s liability exclusion. Litton
won over $4 million.
3)Letters of Intent: May sometimes be treated as contract
Letters of intent: "negotiating in good faith" ex: Amazon buys whole foods. They merely
state what the parties are considering, not what they have actually agreed to. But note
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
For a contract to be enforceable must have seven factors: 3)ch13- consideration: a bargain and exchange + measurable benefit to both parties (value). 4)ch14- legality: the contract is for lawful purpose not anything illegal. 5)ch15- capacity: must be adults with a sound mind. 6)ch15- consent: certain kinds of trickery and force can prevent the formation of a contract. Bilateral contract: a promise made in exchange for another promise. The moment we exchange promises we have a contract. Unilateral contract: one party makes a promise that the other party can accept only by doing something. Ex: lost dog found and returned to owner for some $/reward. Executory contract: a contract agreement in which one or more parties has not yet fulfilled its obligations. Executed contract: an agreement in which all parties have fulfilled their obligations. Express contract: an agreement with all the important terms explicitly stated, oral or written. Ex: mow the lawn example for one week.
