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Offer and Acceptance - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Partridge v Crittenden (1968) - An invitation to treat
      - Carlill v The Carbolic Smoke Ball Company Co. Ltd (1893) - An offer
      - An advertisement is usually an invitation to treat but in the case of Carlill it is not.
    - - Invitation to treat as it is the purchasers decision to buy an item on display.
      - Fisher v Bell (1961)
      - Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemists Ltd (1953)
      - Shopkeeper has the right to refuse to sell the goods.
    - - A seller stating the price of a product does not make it an offer unless the purchaser agrees that he will pay the stated price.
      - Clifton v Palumbo (1944)
    - - Each item is an invitation to treat. When you place a bid it becomes an offer. When the auctioneer bangs their hammer down is the acceptance.
  - - - The revocation must be communicated to the offeree before acceptance for there to be a valid revocation.
      - Just a change of mind is insufficient
      - Bryne v Van Tienhoven (1880)
    - - The third party must be a reliable source and one that both parties can rely on for the communication to be valid.
      - Dickinson v Dobbs (1876)
    - - The offeror can revoke at any time until the offeree has fulfilled the stated conditions.
      - Difficult to state at what stage the offeree has gone too far to prevent revocation.
      - Errington v Errington and Woods (1952)
    - - The offer ends and a contract is formed if the offer is accepted unconditionally.
    - - Rejection of an offer can come from either an outright refusal, or a counter offer.
      - The counter offer must be a genuine offer not a request for more information.
    - - It is not always possible to accept an offer after a period of time.
      - Sometimes there is an express time limit on the duration of an offer.
      - An offer can only expire when there is a term that is only reasonable for a period of time.
      - Ramsgate Victoria Hotel Co. Ltd v Montefiore (1866)
    - - The offer automatically ceases in the case of the death of the offeree.
      - If the offeree knows of the death of the offeror then the offer ceases, if he is unaware then the acceptance will be on the deceased's executors.
    - - Subject to specific conditions to be met by the offeror, an offer is made.
      - Offer cannot be accepted if the condition fails.
      - When buying goods, the specific conditions are than it must be in the same state of condition from offer to acceptance.
- - - - Fenthouse v Bindley (1863)
      - An offeror can waive the need for the offeree to communicate their acceptance, putting themselves at risk of being contractually committed through silence, but they cannot impose the risk on others.
      - These waivers can be expressed or implied, and usually happen in unilateral offers (example case: Carlill v Carbolic Smokeball Co.)
      - Silence cannot be deemed acceptance (reinforced by the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000).
    - - This applies when acceptance is communicated through the post.
      - Acceptance by post is effected when the acceptance is posted, not when it reaches the offeror.
      - Adams v Lindsell
      - This rule only applies where postal acceptance is specified by the offeror or when it is reasonable to use post under the circumstances.
      - The postal rule can be excluded if the offeror specifically states that acceptance comes into effect on receipt of communication.
    - - When using instantaneous forms of communication, the postal rule does not apply, and acceptance is communicated when received by the offeror. e.g. leaving a message on voicemail.
      - Entores Ltd v Miles Far East Corporation
      - Brinkibon Ltd. V Stahag Stahl
      - The postal rule is also inapplicable to email communications – Thomas and Another v BPE Solicitors
    - - When there is a conflict between two standard form contracts, when two companies are trading with each other.
      - "Last shot wins" - the last form contract to be accepted is followed as it acts as a counter-offer destroying the original offer (the first contract).
      - British Road Service v Arthur V Crutchley