Offer and acceptance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Offer and acceptance - Essay Example Similarly, in Partridge v Crittenden, 2 the High Court ruled that there was no violation of the law prohibiting the offering to sell wild birds except those bred in captivity and of the closed-ring specimen despite the advertisement to that effect because it was merely an offer to treat and not a legitimate offer of sale. There are of course, exceptions to this rule as those indicated in such cases as Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co, 3 where the inclusion of the  £1,000 deposit was taken to mean as proof of the serious intent of the advertiser, and Williams v Carwardine, 4 where the advertisement offering reward to any informant in a murder case was held as a general contract with anyone who could provide the information without taking into account the motive of the informant. Thus, there was no initial valid offer by Alf in his advertisement. Neither was there a valid offer/acceptance by Bert when he initially called Alf over the phone considering that he was unsure at that time. Moreover, the agreement between him and Alf for the latter not to sell the computer until Sunday is unenforceable because of the lack of consideration that is an essential element in a contract. In Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Co Ltd v Selfridge & Co Ltd, 5 a tyre maker sued a retailer for selling its tyre below the agreed retail price as previously agreed it and its dealers. One of the reasons why the High Court ruled against the plaintiff was that the defendant was not a party to the agreement in issue and there was no consideration flowing from the promisee to the promissor. Also, in Routledge v Grant 6 the Court held that an offer can be revoked despite an agreement to keep the offer for a certain period if no consideration was paid for that agreement. In the case at bar, there was no option money given by Bert to Alf to seal the agreement and make it enforceable. Even if the promise to hold the sale is valid, the new offer, which was valid, made by Bert on Tuesday and its