Business Law Assignment

Running head: BUSINESS LAW ASSIGNMENT
1
Business Law Assignment
Name
Institution

BUSINESS LAW ASSIGNMENT 2
A contract is a legally binding agreement that is enforceable by law. The law of contract
ensures that these agreements are made in a fair manner and they can be enforced when one
party breaches an agreement. The requirements of a valid contract are; offer and acceptance,
consideration, capacity and legality.
An offer can be described as a proposal and acceptance can be described as acceptance of the
proposal. From the case, Lucy –vs- Zehmer (1954):
The court in determining whether an offer had been made and accepted, relied on the fact that
indeed the plaintiff had the memorandum written twice and signed by Mrs. Zehmer, the parties
provided for the examination of the title , the parties discussed what was to be included in the
sale and they both wrote and signed the contract .The actions and words of the parties in this
case were more important than the intention in the mind of the defendant which was not made
known to the plaintiff during the making of the contract. The parties acted in a manner that
indicated that an offer was made by the defendant and was accepted by the plaintiff. .
The court in evaluating Zehmers’ mental state and behavior in determining whether there was
an offer, relied on the objective standard of intent which is also known as “the meeting of the
minds.” This standard requires all parties to mutually assent to a contract, which must be
declared and demonstrated in an objective manner. This standard is based on the words used,
acts of the parties and the circumstances in which the contract is made. This was reflected in the
courts’ opinion by stating, “In the field of contracts, as generally elsewhere, "We must look to the
outward expression of a person as manifesting his intention rather than to his secret and
unexpressed intention. The law imputes to a person an intention corresponding to the reasonable
meaning of his words and acts....’” (First Nat. Bank v. Roanoke Oil Co., 169).