XX合同法教程教案.doc

XX合同法教程教案 美国合同法简明教程CONTRACTS ChapterINTRODUCTION2I.MEANING OFCONTRACTII.SOURCES OFCONTRACT LAWChapter2ACCEPTANCE2I.INTENT TOCONTRACT II.OFFER ANDACCEPTANCE GENERALLYIII.VALIDITY OFPARTICULAR KINDSOF OFFERSIV.THE ACCEPTANCEV.ACCEPTANCE VARYINGFROM OFFERVI.DURATION OFTHE POWEROF ACCEPTANCEVII.WHEN ACCEPTANCEBEES EFFECTIVEVIII.INDEFINITENESS IX.MISUNDERSTANDING ChapterCONSIDERATION.8I.INTRODUCTION II.THE BARGAINELEMENT III.THEDETRIMENTELEMENT IV.ILLUSORY,ALTERNATIVE ANDIMPLIED PROMISESChapter4PROMISES BINDING WITHOUT CONSIDERATION.9I.PROMISES TOPAY PASTDEBTS II.PROMISE TOPAY FORBENEFITS RECEIVEDIII.OTHER CONTRACTSBINDINGWITHOUTCONSIDERATION IV.PROMISSORY ESTOPPEL Chapter MISTAKE.10I.MISTAKE GENERALLYII.MUTUAL MISTAKEIII.UNILATERAL MISTAKEIV.DEFENSES ANDREMEDIES V.REFORMATION ASREMEDY FORERROR INEXPRESSION Chapter6PAROL EVIDENCEAND INTERPRETATION12I.PAROL EVIDENCERULE GENERALLY1OFFER AND35II.TOTAL ANDPARTIAL INTEGRATIONSIII.ROLES OFJUDGE ANDJURY IV.SITUATIONS WHEREPAROL EVIDENCERULE DOESNOT APPLYV.INTERPRETATION VI.TRADE USAGE,COURSE OFPERFORMANCE,AND COURSEOF DEALINGVII.OMITTED TERMSSUPPLIED BYCOURT Chapter7CONDITIONS,BREACH AND OTHER ASPECTSPERFORMANCE13I.CONDITIONS GENERALLYII.EXPRESS CONDITIONSIII.CONSTRUCTIVE CONDITIONSIV.SUBSTANTIAL PERFORMANCEV.EXCUSE OFCONDITIONS VI.REPUDIATION ANDPROSPECTIVE INABILITYTO PERFORMChapter8ANTICIPATORY REPUDIATIONANDOTHER ASPECTS BREACH18I.ANTICIPATORY REPUDIATIONII.OTHERASPECTSOF REPUDIATIONChapter9FRAUDS19I.INTRODUCTION II.SURETYSHIP III.THE MARRIAGEPROVISION IV.THE LANDCONTRACT PROVISIONV.THE ONEYEAR PROVISIONVI.CONTRACTS FORTHE SALEOF GOODSVII.SATISFACTION BYA MEMORANDUMVIII.ORAL RESCISSIONAND MODIFICATIONIX.RESTITUTION,RELIANCE ANDESTOPPELChapterREMEDIES.21I.INTRODUCTION II.EQUITABLE REMEDIESIII.VARIOUS DAMAGEMEASURES IV.EXPECTATION DAMAGESV.RELIANCE DAMAGESVI.RESTITUTION VII.SUBSTANTIAL PERFORMANCEAS ABASIS FORSUIT ONTHE CONTRACTOF OFSTATUTE OF10VIII.SUITS INQUASICONTRACT IX.FORESEEABILITY X.AVOIDABLE DAMAGESXI.NOMINAL ANDPUNITIVE DAMAGESXII.LIQUIDATED DAMAGESXIII.DAMAGES INSALES CONTRACTSChapter11CONTRACTS INVOLVINGMORE THANPARTIES28I.ASSIGNMENT GENERALLYII.ASSIGNMENT III.DELEGATION OFDUTIES IV.THIRD PARTYBENEFICIARIES Chapter12IMPRACTICABILITY FRUSTRATION32I.INTRODUCTION II.IMPOSSIBILITY OFPERFORMANCE III.IMPRACTICABILITY IV.FRUSTRATION OFPURPOSE V.RESTITUTION ANDRELIANCE WHERETHE PARTIESARE DISCHARGEDChapter13DEFENSES.35I.ILLEGALITY II.DURESS III.MISREPRESENTATION IV.UNCONSCIONABILITY ANDADHESION CONTRACTSV.CAPACITY ChapterWARRANTIES.38I.WARRANTIES GENERALLYII.EXPRESS WARRANTIESIII.IMPLIED MERCHANTABILITYIV.WARRANTY OFFITNESS FORPARTICULAR PURPOSEV.PRIVITY VI.DISCLAIMERS OFWARRANTY TWOAND DELEGATIONIMPOSSIBILITY,&MISCELLANEOUS14WARRANTY OFVII.MODIFYING CONTRACTREMEDIES Chapter15CONTRACTS.39I.RESCISSION II.ACCORD ANDSATISFACTION III.SUBSTITUTED AGREEMENTIV.NOVATION V.ACCOUNT STATEDVI.RELEASES DISCHARGEOF Chapter1INTRODUCTION I.MEANING OFCONTRACTA.Definition:Acontractis anagreement that the lawwill enforce.1.Written v.oral contracts:Although thewordcontractoften refersto awritten document,a writingis not always necessaryto create a contract.An agreement may bebinding onboth partieseven though it isoral.Some contracts,however,must be in writingunder theStatute ofFrauds.II.SOURCES OFCONTRACT LAWA.The UCC:Contract lawis essentiallymon law,i.e.judgemade,not statutory.However,in everystate butLouisiana,sales ofgoods aregoverned by a statute,Article2of theUniform CommercialCode.1.Commonlaw:If the UCC is silent ona particularquestion,the mon law of the statewill control.See UCC?1103.Chapter2OFFER ANDACCEPTANCE I.INTENT TOCONTRACT A.Objective theoryof contracts:Contract lawfollows theobjective theoryof contracts.That is,a partys intent is deemedto bewhat a reasonable person in theposition of the otherparty wouldthink that the firstpartys objectivemanifestation ofintent meant.For instance,in decidingwhether Aintended tomake an offer to B,the issue is whetherAs conductreasonably indicatedto onein Bs positionthat Awas makingan offer.1011Example:A saysto B,Ill sellyou myhouse for$1,000.If onein Bs positionwould reasonablyhave believedthat Awas serious,A will be held to havemade anenforceable offer,even ifsubjectively Awas onlyjoking.B.Legal enforceability:The partiesintention regardingwhether a contract is to belegally enforceablewill normallybe effective.Thus if both parties intend anddesire that theiragreementnot belegally enforceable,it will not be.Conversely,ifbothdesire thatit belegally enforceable,it will be even if the parties mistakenlybelieve thatit is not.1112Example:Both partieswould like to be bound by their oralunderstanding,but mistakenlybelieve thatan oral contract cannot be enforceable.This arrangementwill beenforceable,assuming thatit does not fallwithin theStatute ofFrauds.1.Presumptions:Where theevidence isambiguous aboutwhether the parties intendedto be bound,the courtwill followthese rules: (1)In abusinesscontext,the courtwill presumethatthe parties intendedtheir agreementto belegally enforceable; (2)but in a socialor domesticsituation,the presumptionwill bethat legalrelations werenot intended.Example:Husband promisesto paya monthlyallowance toWife,with whomhe isliving amicably.In theabsence ofevidence otherwise,this agreementwill bepresumed notto be intended aslegally binding,since itarises in a domesticsituation.C.Intent toput inwriting later:If twoparties agree(either orallyor ina briefwriting)on allpoints,but decidethat they will subsequentlyput theirentire agreementinto amore formal written documentlater,the preliminaryagreementmayor maynot bebinding.In general,the partiesintention controls.(Example:If the partiesintendto be bound rightaway basedon theiroral agreement,theywill beboundeven though they expresslyprovide for a laterformalwrittendocument.)12131.Where nointent manifested:Where theevidence ofintentisambiguous,the courtwill generallytreat a contract asexisting as soon asthe mutualassent isreached,evenifno formal document isever drawnup later.But forvery largedeals(e.g.,billion dollaracquisitions),the courtwill probablyfind nointent to bebounduntil theformaldocumentis signed.II.OFFER ANDACCEPTANCE GENERALLYA.Definitions:141.Offerdefined:An offer isthe manifestationof willingnessto enterinto abargain,which justifiesanother personin understandingthat hisassent canconclude thebargain.In otherwords,an offer is somethingthat createsa power of aeptance.2.Aeptancedefined:An aeptance of an offer isa manifestationof assent to the terms thereofmade by the offereeinamanner invitedor requiredbythe offer.Example:A saysto B,Ill sellyou myhouse for$100,000,if yougive mea checkright nowfor$10,000and promise to paythe restwithin30days.This is an offer.If Bsays,Here is my$10,000check,and Ill havethe balanceto younext week,this is an aeptance.After the aeptance ours,thepartieshave anenforceable contract(assuming thatthere is no requirementof awriting,as thereprobably wouldbeinthis situation).B.Unilateral vs.bilateral contracts:An offermay proposeeither abilateral ora unilateral contract.14151.Bilateral contract:A bilateral contract isa contractin whichboth sidesmake promises.(Example:A saysto B,I promiseto payyou$1,000on April15if youpromise nowthat youwill walk across the Brooklyn Bridgeon April1.This isan offerfor abilateralcontract,since Ais proposingto exchange his promise for Bs promise.)2.Unilateral contract:A unilateral contract isone whichinvolves anexchange of the offerors promisefor the offerees act.That is,inaunilateral contractthe offeree does not make a promise,but insteadsimply acts.Example:A saysto B,If youwalkacross theBrooklyn Bridge,I promiseto payyou$1,000as soonas youfinish.A hasproposed toexchangehispromiseforBs actof walkingacross the bridge.Therefore,A hasproposed aunilateral contract.III.VALIDITY OFPARTICULAR KINDSOF OFFERSA.Offer made in jest:An offerwhich the offeree knowsor shouldknow ismadeinjest is not avalid offer.Thus evenif it isaepted,no contract is created.16B.Preliminary negotiations:If aparty whodesires tocontract solicitsbids,this solicitationis not an offer,and cannot be aepted.Instead,it merelyserves as a basisfor preliminarynegotiations.16Example:A says,I would liketo sell myhouse for at least$100,000.This isalmost certainlya solicitation of bids,rather thanan offer,so B cannotaeptby saying,Heresmycheck for$100,000.C.Advertisements:Most advertisementsappearing innewspapers,store windows,etc.,are notoffers to sell.This isbecause theydo notcontain sufficientwords ofmitment tosell.(Example:A circularstating,Mens jackets,$26each,would notbe an offer tosell jacketsat thatprice,because it is toovague regardingquantity,duration,etc.)191.Specific terms:But if the advertisementcontains specificwords ofmitment,especially apromisetosell a particular numberof units,then itmay be an offer.(Example:100mens jacketsat$26apiece,first efirst servedstarting Saturday,is sospecific thatit probablyisan offer.)2.Words ofmitment:Look forwords ofmitmentthese suggestan offer.(Example:Send threebox topsplus$1.95for yourfree cottonTshirt,isanoffer even though it is alsoan advertisement;this isbecause theadvertiser ismitting himselfto takecertain actionin response to theconsumers action.)D.Auctions:When anitem isput upfor auction,this is usually notanoffer,but israther asolicitationofoffers(bids)from theaudience.So unlessthe saleis expresslysaid to bewithout reserve,the auctioneermay withdrawthe goodsfrom thesale evenafter thestart ofbidding.See UCC?2328 (3).20IV.THE ACCEPTANCEA.Who may aept:An offermay be aepted onlybya personinwhom the offeror intendedto create a power of aeptance.23Example:O saysto A,I offertosellyou myhouse for$100,000.B overhears,and says,I aept.Assuming thatOs offerwas reasonablyviewed asbeing limitedto A,Bcannotaept eventhough theconsideration heis willingto giveis whatO saidhe wanted.B.Offeree mustknow ofoffer:An aeptance isusuallyvalid only if the offeree knowsof the offer atthe timeof hisalleged aeptance.1.Rewards:Thus if a rewardis offeredforaparticular act,apersonwho doesthe actwithout knowingabout thereward cannotclaim it.C.Method of aeptance:The offeroris themaster of his offer.That is,the offerormay prescribethe methodby which the offermay be aepted(e.g.,by telegram,by letter,by mailinga check,etc.).26311.Where methodnot specified:If the offer does not specifythe modeof aeptance,the aeptancemay begiven in any reasonablemethod.262.Aeptance ofunilateral contract:An offerforaunilateral contract is aepted by fullperformance of the requested act.26Example:A saysto B,Ill payyou$1,000if youcross theBrooklyn Bridge.This canonly beaepted byAs actof pletelycrossing thebridge.(However,the offerwill berendered temporarilyirrevocable onceB startsto perform,as discussedbelow.)3.Offer inviteseither promise or performance:If the offer does notmakeclear whetheraeptance isto ourthrough apromiseor performance,the offereemay aeptby eitherapromiseorperformance.27a.Shipment ofgoods:For instance,ifabuyer ofgoods placesapurchase orderthat does not statehow aeptance isto our,the sellermayaeptby eitherpromising toship the goods,or byin factshipping thegoods.UCC?2206 (1)(b).b.Aommodation shipment:aommodatingthe buyerby shippingwhat the seller knowsand saysare nonconforming goods,this doesnot actas an aeptance.In thisaommodation shipmentsituation,the seller is makinga counteroffer,which the buyer canthen eitheraept orreject.If the buyer aepts,there isa contract for thequantity andtype ofgoods actuallysent bythe seller,not forthose originallyordered bythebuyer.If thebuyer rejects,he cansend backthegoods.In anyevent,seller will notbe found to beinbreach.UCC?2206 (1)(b).284.Notice of aeptanceofunilateralcontract:Where anoffer looksto aunilateralcontract,most courtsnow holdthatthe offeree mustgive noticeofhis aeptance afterhe has done therequestedact.If hedoesnot,the contractthat was formed bythe actis discharged.29Example:A saysto B,Ill payyou$1,000if youcrosstheBrooklynBridgeby April1.B crossesthebridgeon time.As soonas Bcrosses,a contractis formed.But if B doesnot notifyA withinareasonable time thereafterthat he hasdoneso,As obligationwill bedischarged.5.Aeptance bysilence:Generally,anoffercannotbeaeptedbysilence.But there are afew exceptions:2930a.Reason to understand:Silence canconstitute aeptance if the offeror hasgiven the offeree reasontounderstandthat silencewill constituteaeptance,and the offeree subjectivelyintends to bebound.b.Benefit ofservices:An offereewho silentlyreceives thebenefit ofservices(but notgoods)will beheld tohave aepteda contractfor themif he: (1)had areasonable opportunityto rejectthem;and (2)knew orshould haveknown thatthe providerof theservices expectedto bepensated.c.Prior conduct:The priorcourse ofdealing maymake itreasonable for the offerees silencetobeconstrued asconsent.(Example:Each timein thepast,Seller respondsto purchase orders fromBuyer eitherby shipping,or bysaying,If thesellerisWe dont havethe item.If Sellernow remainssilent in the faceof anorder by Buyer foraparticularitem,Sellers silencewill constitutean aeptanceof theorder.)d.Aeptance bydominion:Where the offeree receivesgoods,and keeps them,this exerciseofdominionis likelytobeheldtobe an aeptance.V.ACCEPTANCE VARYINGFROM OFFERA.Common lawmirror imagerule:Under the monlaw,the offerees responseoperates as anaeptanceonlyifit isthe precisemirror imageof the offer.If theresponse conflictsat allwith the terms of the offer,or addsnew terms,the purported aeptance isin facta rejection and counteroffer,notanaeptance.3233Example:A writesto B,Ill sellyou myhouse for$100,000,closing totake placeApril1.B writesback,Thats fine;lets closeApril2,however.At monlaw,Bs responseisnotanaeptancebecause itdiverges slightlyfrom the offer,so there isno contract.B.UCC view:The UCCrejects themirror imagerule,and willoften leadto a contract beingformed eventhoughthe aeptance divergesfrom theoffer.Wherever possible,the UCCtries tofind acontract,so as to keepthepartiesfrom weaselingout(as theyoften tryto dowhen the market changes).This entirebattle of the formsis dealtwith inUCC?2207,probably themost importantUCC provisionfortheContracts student.34351.General:At themost generallevel,?2207 (1)provides that anyexpression of aeptanceorwritten confirmationwill actas anaeptance eventhoughitstates termsthat areadditional toor differentfromthose containedin theoffer.Example:Buyer sendsapurchaseordercontaining awarranty.Seller respondswith anacknowledgement,containing a disclaimer of warranty.There will beacontract undertheUCC,eventhoughthere wouldnot havebeen oneat monlaw.2.Aeptance expresslyconditional onassent tochanges:Anexpression of aeptancedoesnotform acontact ifit isexpressly madeconditional onassentto.additional or different terms.?2207 (1).So if the purportedaeptancecontains additionalordifferentterms from theoffer,and alsostates somethinglike,This aeptanceof yourofferiseffective onlyif youagree toall of thetermslisted on the reverseside of this aeptanceform,there isnocontractformed bythe exchangeof documents.3640a.Limited:Courts arereluctant tofind thatthis sectionapplies.Only if the second partys formmakes itclear that that party is unwillingto proceedwith thetransaction unlessthe firstparty agreesto thesecondpartys changes,will theclause beapplied soastoprevent acontract fromforming.3.Additionalterm inaeptance:Where the offerees responsecontains anadditionalterm(i.e.,a clausetaking acertain positiononanissue withwhich theoffer doesnot dealat all),the consequencesdepend onwhether both parties aremerchants.4143a.At least one partynot merchant:If atleast onepartyisnota merchant,the additional term doesnot preventthe offerees responsefrom givingrise toacontract,but the additional term bees part of the contract onlyifthe offeror explicitly assents toit.Example:Consumer sendsa purchaseorder toSeller,which doesnot mentionhow disputesare tobe resolved.Seller sendsan acknowledgement form backto Consumer,which correctlyrecites thebasic terms of thedeal(price,quantity,etc.),and thensays,All disputesare tobe arbitrated.Even thoughthe acknowledgement(theaeptance)differed fromthe purchaseorder byintroducing the arbitration term,the acknowledgementformed acontract.However,since atleastoneparty(Consumer)was notamerchant,this additional term willonly bee part of the contract if Consumerexplicitlyassentsto thatterm(e.g.,by initialingthe arbitrationclause onthe acknowledgementform).b.Both merchants:But ifboth partiesto thetransaction aremerchants,then the additionaltermautomatically bees part of the contract,asageneral rule.(Example:On factsof priorexample,if Buyerwas amerchant,thearbitrationclause wouldbee part ofthe contract.)However,therearetwo importantexceptions tothisadditionalterm beespartofthe contractrule:i.Materiality:The additionwill not bee partofthe contractifitisone whichmaterially altersthecontract.For instance,a disclaimerofwarrantywill alwaysbefound to materiallyalter thecontract,so ifthesellerincludes suchadisclaimerin his acknowledgementformafter receiving thebuyers purchaseorder,the disclaimerwillnotbee partofthecontract.ii.Objection:If the offeror objectsto havingtheadditionaltermbeepartofthecontract,it willnot sobee.4.Aeptance silent:If anissue ishandled in the firstdocument(theoffer),but notin thesecond(the aeptance),the aeptancewill betreated ascovering allterms oftheoffer,not justthose onwhich the writings agree.4243Example:Buyers purchaseorder saysthat disputeswill bearbitrated;Sellers acknowledgementissilentontheissue of arbitration.The Sellersformwillbefoundtobeanaeptan