Hi, you're listening to the Australian Law Student Law In 4 podcast, your go-to podcast
for legal insights in four minutes or less.
I'm Nick Hodgkinson, and today we're starting our fantastic foray into contract law with
a discussion on agreement.
But first, our obligatory disclaimer.
The Law In 4 is produced by law students for law students.
It is not, nor is it intended to constitute, legal advice.
If you require legal assistance, you should contact your local law society, who can direct
you appropriately.
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Okay, let's kick things off with offers.
An offer, as distinguished from an invitation to treat, signifies a willingness to enter
into a bargain with the intention to be bound, without further negotiation on the terms.
You might like to consider how the court applied offer and acceptance analysis differently
in the cases of shop sales, with Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, and ticket cases,
with McRoberts & Miller Airline Services.
In determining whether an offer exists, the reasonable person standard comes into play.
As seen in Carlyle and Carbolic Smokeball Company, if a reasonable person would understand
the language of the offer to be sufficiently clear, sincere, and promissory, then an offer
is likely to be present.
But what about rescinding offers?
Well, offers incompletely accepted can be revoked without penalty, as observed in Mobile Oil
Australia and Wellcome International.
However, if there is an ancillary contract not to revoke, then the unaccepted contract
may remain unenforceable.
When a counteroffer comes into play, the conflict approach implies that a counteroffer rejects
or terminates the original offer.
In Butler Machine Tool Company and XLO Corp, it's shown that acceptance occurs when the
offeree signs and returns the counteroffer, indicating their agreement.
If we shift gears now to acceptance, acceptance is defined as an act by the offeree that indicates
their unequivocal and final assent to the offer.
Silence upon receipt isn't sufficient to form a contract.
As demonstrated in Felthouse and Bindley, manifested assent is required for offer and
Acceptance can also take place via conduct, where the offeree knows the detailed terms,
benefits from the offer, and has a reasonable opportunity to reject the terms, as seen in
Impernal Holdings and Mark and Paul Partners.
Acceptance by post or electronic communication varies.
With postal acceptance occurring upon posting where the postal method is contemplated by
the parties, as in Henthorne and Fraser.
In NSW, electronic communications are governed by the Electronic Transactions Act 2000.
When offer and acceptance are unclear, we apply the acid test.
Per Brambles Holdings and Bathurst City Council, mutual assent may be inferred if a reasonable
person in each party's position sees a concluded bargain, despite the moment of formation.
Okay, and with that, we've unpacked the intricate dance of offer and acceptance.
Understanding these nuances is key to navigating the legal landscape of contract law.
Join us next time for more legal insights on the Australian Law Student Law in 4 podcast.
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Thanks for watching.
We'll see you next time.