session 5.ppt
TRANSCRIPT
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Acceptance S.2(b) defines acceptance as, when the person to whom the proposal is
made signifies his assent thereto, the proposal is said to be accepted. A
proposal, when accepted becomes a promise.
Thus, the acceptance is the assent given to a proposal, and it has the
effect of converting the proposal into promise.
Communication by external manifestation or overt act.- it is required that
the assent should be signified or expressed, and by any act or omission by
which the party accepting intends to communicate his assent or which has
the effect of communicating.
Fall of the hammer in case of an auction sale is an act amounting to
acceptance.
In certain circumstances, the oferees silence, coupled with such conduct
as takes the form of a positive act, may constitute an acceptance. 2
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CONT
8. Must be given before the offer lapses or before the offer is withdrawn
9. Cannot be implied from silence
Offer & acceptance is complete when communicated.
When we accept & post a letter duly stamped,& it gets lostthe contract is
complete
Rejection of offer-express-notice reaches the offeror -
Implied-counter offer&conditional acceptance
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Acceptance By Conduct
Acceptance by conduct is action in terms of the offer. Cases of unilateral promises /
general offers, demand some act in return for the promise to pay.
S.8. provides that, performance of the conditions of a proposal, of the acceptance of
any consideration for a reciprocal promise which may be offered with a proposal, is an
acceptance of theproposal. Such proposals demand acceptance by performance.
Communication to offeror:
Acceptance must be communicated to the offeror himself. A communication to any
other person is as ineffectual as if no communication has been made.
An offeror cannot impose upon the offree the burden of refusal.
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Communication From Acceptor
The communication of acceptance should be from a person who has the
authority to accept. Information received from an unauthorized person is
ineffective.
Powel v. Lee (1908): the plaintiff was applicant to the headmastership
of a school.
When communication not necessary:
When the offeror prescribes a particular mode of acceptance, then all
that the acceptor has to do is to follow that mode. There may be an offer
which impliedly indicates that acting on its terms will be a sufficient
acceptance. Announcement to pay reward for discovering a lost thing is
an offer of this kind.6
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Mode of Communication
Acceptance should be in prescribed manner: acceptance has to be made in the manner
prescribed or indicated by the offerer, any other manner may not be effective,
particularly where the offerer clearly insists that the acceptance shall be made in the
prescribed manner.
Elliason v. Henshaw (1819): A offered to buy flour from B requesting that an
acceptance should be set by the wagon which brought the offer.
A minor departure from the prescribed mode of communication should not upset the
fact of acceptance provided that the communication is made in an equally expeditious
way.
This AngloAmerican rule has not been strictly followed in the Indian Contract Act.
S.7 deals with this matter.
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Revocation Of Acceptance
According to English law an acceptance once made is irrevocable.
In India, on the other hand, acceptance is generally revocable. An acceptor
may cancel his acceptance by a speedier mode of communication which
will reach earlier that the acceptance itself. Section 5 states the relevancy.
The case if both acceptance and revocation of acceptance reach together,
as per illustration of S.5, the acceptance will be deemed to have been
revoked.
Countess of Dunmore v. Alexander (1830): a proposal of service made by
a letter sent through agent. Offer and revocation received at the same time.
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Contract Over Telephone
It has the same effect as any other ordinary agreement discussed sofar. But the offeree must make sure that his acceptance is properlyreceived, heard and understood by the offeror.
Eg1-A makes an offer to B and at the same time a train/car passesand an important word is not audible there is no contract until hehas reconfirmed what he had said.
Eg2-(Entores Vs Miles )Far East Corporation (1955) say A makesan offer to B over a telephoneand the line goes dead in between sothat A doesn't hear Bs word ofacceptance. There is no contract atthat point. He may not though knowwhen actually the line went
dead but since he doesnt conclude off so he must reconfirm bycalling back. [The principle of the Entores case wasendorsed by theSupreme Court in Bhagwan Dass Kedia Vs Girdharilal,AIR(1966)