Application of the concepts of misrepresentation, breach of contract and Australian Consumer Law to the sale of business

Transcript
For all parts, read the speaker notes first and then the text mentioned in PPT slides.
1. Introduction slide
2. This report aims to highlight the applicability of these three concepts, with regards to the
contract which was created between Barry and Angelo for the sale of business, based on
certain terms. The first issue is related to presence of misrepresentation under contract
law and Australian Consumer Law and the second issue is related to breach of contract
under common law.
3. Before analysing the vitiating factors being present in a contract, there is a need to
analyse the terms of the contract. Such terms, which are carried on during the
negotiations phase of the contract, are not binding in the eyes of law, as these are
considered as invitation to treat. Invitation to treat is something which comes before the
offer is made, and is not necessary to be present in every case. It is important to make
differentiation between what exactly has been made, i.e. whether it is an offer or an
invitation to treat, and this can be done by analysing the statement which has been made.
For instance, Partridge v Crittenden is a leading example of an advertisement being
considered as an invitation to treat in general. So, the things or the terms covered under
the advertisement cannot be claimed upon under the contract law, in general. Once the
offer has been made, the contract is formed, where all the remaining elements of contract
are established to be present.
4. Upon a contract being formed, the terms covered under it become binding. However,
there are cases where the court would allow a party from not following the contractual