Exclusion Clause In Contract Law

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Part I - Formation of Contracts A contract may be defined simply as a legally binding agreement. Alternatively, it may be defined as a promise or set of promises which enforces the law. Contracts may be classified as either bilateral or unilateral. A bilateral contract is one where a promise by one party is exchanged with each other based on trust. A unilateral contract is one where one party promises to do something (usually pay a sum of money) in return for an act of the other party. An offer is a statement by one party of a willingness to enter into a contract on stated terms. An offer has to be communicated to the offeree An invitation to treat is simply an expression of willingness to enter into negotiations which may …show more content…

 Exam tip: Remember to follow the three step process below in order to conclusively determine the validity of an exclusion clause. 1) Incorporation – is the clause a part of the contract? (a) Signature: L’Estrange v Graucob& Grogan v Robin Defence of ‘Non est factum’: Gallie v Lee& United Dominions Trust v Western (b) Reasonable notice: Parker v South Eastern Railway – must take reasonable steps to inform claimant Thompson v LMS Railway*– exclusion clause inside the railway timetable is good enough Sugar v LMS Railway – reference to the exclusion clause obliterated Henderson v Stevenson – an exclusion clause should be referred to on the front of the ticket Olley v Marlborough Court – the notice should not come after formation of the contract Chapelton v Barry UDC – the document must be of a contractual nature Spurling v Bradshaw – the red hand rule (c) Previous course of dealing: McCutcheon v David MacBryne Ltd – must be regular and consistent Henry Kendall v William Lilico – 100 contracts over 3 years is regular and consistent Hollier v Rambler Motors – 3 or 4 contracts over 5 years is not regular and …show more content…

See Avraamides v Colwill Enforcement:The right of the third party to enforce a term of the contract is subject to the terms of the contract: s.1(4). This means that the parties to the contract can impose conditions upon the third party’s ability to exercise his rights under the contract. For example, they could stipulate that the third party could receive a benefit under the contract only if he applied for it within a certain time period. Third parties have the same remedies as would be available to them if they were contracting parties, including the rights to damages and specific performance: s.1(5). Although the contract is enforceable by the promisee as well as the third party, there cannot be double liability for the promisor: s.5; so any recovery by the promisee would have the effect of reducing any award subsequently made to the third party. Consent to variations:Section 2 deals with the issue of amending and cancelling the contract. This states that, unless the contract provides otherwise, the parties to the contract may not rescind the contract, or vary it so as

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