University Business Law: Offer and Acceptance Methods and Application

This assignment analyzes the principles of offer and acceptance within the context of business law, examining three distinct scenarios. The first part focuses on the postal rule, determining whether a contract was formed between Mr. Derek and Ms. Mona based on a newspaper advertisement and a posted letter of acceptance. The second part explores the mailbox rule in relation to email communication, assessing whether Mr. Derek is bound by Mr. Roy's email acceptance, given Mr. Derek's aversion to digital media. The final part considers the legal status of a promise and whether Mr. Derek is bound by a subsequent promise to Ms. Sunitha, given an earlier offer to Ms. Mona. The analysis incorporates relevant legal precedents, including Adams v. Lindsell and Thomas v. BPE Solicitors, to determine the validity of contracts and the obligations of the parties involved. The assignment concludes with recommendations for Mr. Derek regarding his contractual obligations.

Running head: BUSINESS LAW
Methods of Offer and Acceptance
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Table of Contents
Answer to part 1...............................................................................................................................2
Issue:............................................................................................................................................2
Rules:...........................................................................................................................................2
Application:.................................................................................................................................3
Conclusion:..................................................................................................................................3
Answer to part 2...............................................................................................................................3
Issue:............................................................................................................................................3
Rule:.............................................................................................................................................3
Application:.................................................................................................................................4
Conclusion:..................................................................................................................................4
Answer to part 3...............................................................................................................................4
Issue:............................................................................................................................................4
Rules:...........................................................................................................................................5
Application:.................................................................................................................................5
Conclusion:..................................................................................................................................5
Reference:........................................................................................................................................6

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Answer to part 1
Issue:
The main issue of the case is to determine whether any contract has been made in
between Mr. Derek and Ms. Mona or not.
Rules:
The subject matter of the case is invariably based on the principle of offer and acceptance
(1). According to the general principle, an offer can be accepted only when directly
communicated with the person make the offer. However, there are certain exceptions to this rule
and postal rule is one of them. In Adams v Lindsell (1818) 1 B & Ald 681, it has been mentioned
by the court that in postal rule direct communication is not mandatory or is not required. The
offer will be considered as acceptance when any person posts his desire in the post box. It has
also been mentioned that even if the letter has not been reached to the offeror in time, then also it
will be regarded as acceptance to the offer (4). Fridman has termed it as postal acceptance rule.
The same principle has been established in case of the Henthorn v Fraser [1892] 2 Ch 27, that if
the circumstances allow the parties to post their acceptance through letter, it will be legally
accepted and the decision of the parties will be bind on them (5). The principle of postal rule has
been engraved in Brinkibon Ltd v Stahag Stahl and Stahlwarenhandelsgesellschaft GmbH
[1983] 2 AC 34.

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Application:
In this given case, it has been observed that Mr. Derek has joined in a group who are
opposed the usage of technology in case of selling any property. He has given an advertisement
to the newspaper from where Ms. Mona came to know about his property that he wished to sell
and post a letter. Therefore, as per the case of Adams v Lindsell, it can be stated that contract has
been made in between them, as the offer made by Mr. Derek has been accepted Ms. Mona.
Conclusion:
A valid contract has been made in between Mr. Derek and Ms. Mona regarding the
property and he is advised to sell the property to Ms. Mona, as she is the first person who has
accepted the offer made by Mr. Derek.
Answer to part 2
Issue:
Considering the second part of the case, it can be stated that the main issue of the case is
whether Mr. Derek is bound by the process of acceptance made by Mr. Roy or not.
Rule:
The theme of this case is based on the rule of mailbox acceptance. There are certain
notions on the mailbox rule and it can be stated that it is one of the exceptions to the general rule
of acceptance but not based on the similar principle of postal rule. The validity of the email
contract is based on the circumstances only (6). It has been observed that an offer can be treated
to be accepted only in case when the mail has been reached in the mailbox of the offer maker and
not before that. Unlike postal rule, in mailbox agreement the offer is not treated as accepted after
making the mail. The principle has been established in the case of Thomas v BPE Solicitors.

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However, there should be sufficient background regarding the offer acceptance by electronic
mail (7).
Application:
In this case, it has been mentioned that Mr. Derek has joined in a group who are against
the use of any digital media and he has specifically mentioned that no electronic media is
allowed in case of property transaction. However, Mr. Roy has known about the sale
advertisement from a local newspaper and he has sent an electronic mail to Mr. Derek about his
interest on the property. The validity of the rule of mailbox is depending on circumstances and
therefore, it can be stated that the process of acceptance taken by Mr. Roy has infringed the
conditions mentioned by Mr. Derek.
Conclusion:
In this context, it can be stated that the process of acceptance followed by Mr. Roy does
not bind Mr. Derek and he is advised not to make any contract with Mr. Roy.
Answer to part 3
Issue:
The primary issue in this case is to identify whether Mr. Derek is bound by the promise
made by him to Ms. Sunitha regarding the property or not.

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Rules:
The case is based on the general principle of offer and acceptance and the legal status of
promise in case of contract. In case of contract, offer and acceptance plays an essential role (2).
In simple word, offer is a promise that has been given to someone to do or abstain from doing
something. However, an offer can be revoked before the offeree has accepted the same. Once an
offer has been accepted, the offer maker could not revoke the same (3). An acceptance should be
unconditional in nature and it is to be mentioned that contract will be made in between two
person if the offer has been accepted directly. However, there are certain exceptions to this rule.
In the case of Adam v Smith, the court has observed that validity of an offer is based on
reasonable view of a person and not on the intention of the parties only.
Application:
In this case, it has been observed that Mr. Derek has published an advertisement to sale
his property with a condition that whoever will make the first attempt, he will get the property.
However, from the case study, it has been observed that Ms. Mona approached him first i.e. on
Sunday. However, it has been observed that on Tuesday, he has made a promise to Ms. Sunitha
to sell the property to her and set the price of the property at low consideration and the offer has
been accepted by her.
Conclusion:
Therefore, it can be stated that a valid offer has been made in between them. However, it
is advised to Mr. Derek that he could not sell the property to Ms. Sunitha, as contract for the
property has been made in between Mr. Derek and Ms. Mona earlier to this and therefore, he is
liable to sell the property to Ms. Mona as per his conditions.

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Reference:
1. Arvind TT. Contract Law. Oxford University Press; 2017 Mar 9.
2. Bayern S. Offer and Acceptance in Modern Contract Law: A Needles Concept. Cal. L.
Rev.. 2015;103:67.
3. Fried C. Contract as promise: A theory of contractual obligation. Oxford University
Press, USA; 2015.
4. Luban D. Time-Mindedness and Jurisprudence. Virginia Law Review. 2015 Jun 1:903-
17.
5. McLaren Y. 6 Contract Law–Some Specific Issues. Commercial Law. 2016 Sep 30.
6. Sasso L. Certain comparative notes on electronic contract formation. Право. Журнал
Высшей школы экономики. 2016(1).
7. Sharma V. Unit-7 Issues Emerging from Online Contracting.
8. Wright D. Making the Contract Part 2–Offer and Acceptance. Using Commercial
Contracts: A Practical Guide for Engineers and Project Managers. 2016:55-77.