Enjoy Upto 50% off on all Your Assignments ORDER NOW
Download Free Sample Order New Solution

Question 1.

Introduction

The doctrine of precedent can be defined as the principle that is related with the previous decisions that are made by the court within the limitations that are well defined. The declaration regarding the cases is decided in the same manner when the facts that are material become “ratio decidendi”. The courts are vested with the power to determine the legitimate acts that are performed by the executive as well as the legislative branches of the respective government. In this essay, the doctrine of precedent in relation to the United Kingdom has been taken up with support from relevant legislation and regulations.

Main Body

In the United Kingdom, the doctrine of the judicial precedent has been seen in the principle of ‘stare decisis’. This means that the decisions that are taken by the court should be abide by them. It can be referred to the idea that once any decision is taken by the court, other courts beyond them should be bound to that decision. This is not valid in certain circumstances1. This gives rise to the notion that the cases which are similar to one another are more likely to be treated as the same way which in turn ensures the system of justice. For this practice, the hierarchy of courts is required. In the UK, the hierarchy at the lower area includes Crown, County courts and Magistrates. All these courts do not have the right or power that will result in the creation or overruling any precedent that has been made in the court previously. While on the other hand, the upper court hierarchies include Court of Appeal and the High Court2. At the top of the Supreme Court of UK is present. However, these courts have the privilege and power to make a precedent and depart from the decisions that are made by the other courts.

For any court to make a precedent, the record of the previous decisions is required and will be taken up for making any precedent. The records can be found in the Law Reports and can be varied in forms. The higher ranking Law Reports that are found in the publications like All England Series that are written by academics well versed in legal matters. A wide and variety of information are found in the publications that will help in guiding the making of the precedents. It is also available in the law sections in the newspapers as well as in legal journals. They are also available in printed and online form. Identification of the ratio decidendi is necessary for setting up of a precedent. But in certain cases the provisions of reasoning that can be used to make future decisions can result in the non binding of the decisions. This is because they hail from the courts that are inferior and in such circumstances the persuasive precedent can be taken up4. As found in R v Gotts, the ratio of the obiter comment, that has been found by the judges and the decision to follow the obiter comment gas been seen as well as in the case of R v Howe which stated that the defense under duress cannot be considered valid defense to attempted murder.

The doctrine of judicial precedent is important in the UK and is considered one of the important features in the law of UK. This is because the doctrine o the precedent helps in the understanding of the litigation based on the binding decisions that are made by the courts previously. The winning and losing of the case are dependent upon the doctrine of the precedent. Thus, as the principle of stare decisis are followed by the UK courts, the decisions and the application of the decisions that are set out in the higher courts can be taken up5. The country of UK follows the common law and the judgments that are made on this basis are important as the precedent. This will imply that the binding of the cases that are subsequent based on the seniority that are present in the court according to the hierarchical structure can be seen. Therefore, in such circumstances the case laws are considered as the part of the law that can be done by setting precedents that are legal. This is also useful in the areas where the interpretation of the legislation is not possible as well as the absence of the legislation is seen.

According to the case of Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] A.C. 562, [1932] UKHL 100, 1932 S.C. (H.L.) 31, 1932 S.L.T. 317, [1932] W.N. 139, the doctrine of precedent can be seen. Donoghue is responsible for the shaping of the English law regarding tort law as well as the negligence law. In this case the client had become very ill after consuming the spoiled beer and had in turn sued the owner as he owned duty of care6. In this case ratio decidendi has been observed towards the owner who had the duty of care and his decisions have impacted the life of the consumer. Therefore, this ratio has been identified under the negligent case. For the case of Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co Ltd (1892), the obiter dicta was added by the judge that had helped in the assistance on viewing the decision that was made by them. In the case of McLoughin v O’Brian (1983) the disapproval of the judgment by the majority and the use of persuasive precedent can be seen that deals with the negligence in nervous shock.

Conclusion

It can be concluded that the doctrine of judicial precedent has been a unique feature in the UK courts and law. This principle deals with the standing along with the decisions that have been made by the court previously. The hierarchy of the courts is also required for the use of the doctrine of legal precedent. The judges who want to improve their choices regarding the decisions that they have made will also be able to do so with the help of judicial precedents. It is based on Stare Decisis which means standing according to the decisions that were made previously.

Question 2

The Distinction Between Offer And Invitation To Treat Is Fundamental In Contract Law

Introduction

The offer and invitation to a treat can be defined as legally binding agreement that is accepted and the making of any negotiations can be taken up under this concept. An offer is made to the seller while making negotiations. In this essay, the importance and understanding the intentions while contracting with the party and offering the readiness regarding the contract can be shown. An offer can be defined as a statement that helps in understanding the desire regarding certain terms and conditions within the contract. The two terms can have separate meanings and the legal binding in the terms have been taken up with reference to the case law.

Main Body

The primary difference between the invitation and an offer is to make the offer of how parties deliberate to proceed. An invitation to treat primarily invites other party to make talks and to make an offer to the seller as opposed to an offer, which directly permits the other party to engage into a concurrence as soon as it is accepted and at the time while it could appear problematic, this fundamental difference can be found frequently in day-to-day life7. When we visit a bookstore, the shopkeeper is already inviting us to buy something by simply displaying the books there. No one is obligated to do anything in this situation by law. Similar to how most kinds of advertising are invitations to offer rather than offers themselves. It is important to distinguish between an offer and a request to treat. A treat invitation is a sign that someone is open to discussions, but it doesn't mean they agree to be bound by the conditions. People who are not entirely prepared to embrace the legal repercussions of their acceptance should not make an offer. However, a response to an invitation to treat cannot result in a legally binding agreement. The objective intent of both parties is considered by the court when determining whether one of the parties has made an offer8.  An offer and a treaty invitation differ in that the first may be accepted; converting it into a contract, but the latter may not. Invitation to treat is essentially a preliminary discussion in contract negotiations. When tenders are requested and one is accepted, an agreement is frequently reached through offer and acceptance. The Court of Appeal had taken a different approach as compared to the House of Lords. This is important as the approach helped in looking at the case differently. Along with that it also gave an understanding of the problems regarding the Council’s behavior on the decision taken by the House of Lords. The main difference in the opinion is seen among House of Lords and Lord Denning9. This is seen on the basis of the construction of the law regarding contract law. The conventional approach that was taken up in the case of the contract shows that one party is bound to accept all the terms that are provided while making an offer and the unconditional acceptance of the terms has been highlighted. An example of invitation can be seen in the case of Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemists (Southern) Ltd [1953] and Fisher v Bell [1961]. This shows that the contents that are present in the offer rather than an invitation to the treat. The letter was reviewed but it lacked certainty due to the poor wording. The case mainly dealt with the action that was based on specific performance and all those performances was based on the contract for the sale of land. The main problems that emerged were whether there was any correspondence between the parties that gave rise to the enforceable contract10. Moreover the council tried to adopt the plan by which the tenants need to purchase their homes. But slowly with the rival of the local government, that scheme was abandoned. This also made clear that there were no more homes that should be sold and all the homes mainly belonged to the council11.  Mr. Gibson relied on the letter from Manchester Corporation about whether there was any claim regarding the offer to sell the homes and there were also questions regarding whether there was any offer made regarding the selling of these homes. While Mr. Gibson succeeded in the county court and thus there was specific performance as awarded the House of Lords found out something different and thus after much findings it was seen that there were no offers from the corporation which was capable of giving rise to the binding contract12. Thus there was no clear information made by the council that wants to sell the homes. This council mainly created the scheme by which the tenants of the council houses can easily purchase the homes. The sale will also follow the exact market value depending on the length of tenancy.

Conclusion

It can be concluded that there is a difference between an offer and an invitation on certain terms within the contract. The legal binding of the terms and conditions within the contract has been identified in the essay. An invitation cannot be considered as an offer and the invitation is seen as the negotiation for making an offer. However, it can be seen that one single person cannot be able to make a decision unless they are prepared to take any legal consequences. The conversion of the agreement after acceptance should be bound by a definite promise.

References

Casement, “Gibson v Manchester City Council, [1979] 1 WLR 294: United Kingdom House of Lords, Judgment, Law, Casemine.com” ( https://www.casemine.com 2023) <https://www.casemine.com/judgement/uk/5a8ff8c960d03e7f57ecd6ca> accessed January 9, 2023

Chen W, “Gibson v Manchester City Council [1979] 1 WLR 294 - Case Summary” ( lawprof.co September 5, 2022) <https://lawprof.co/contract/contract-formation-cases/gibson-v-manchester-city-council-1979-1-wlr-294/> accessed January 9, 2023

Clarke J, “Gibson v Manchester City Council” ( Australian Contract Law March 13, 2021) <https://www.australiancontractlaw.info/cases/database/gibson-manchester> accessed January 9, 2023

Dosanjh J, “The Doctrine of Legal Precedent: When Is a Court Decision Binding?” ( LEXLAW Solicitors & Barristers April 30, 2020) <https://lexlaw.co.uk/solicitors-london/the-doctrine-of-legal-precedent-when-is-a-court-decision-binding/#:~:text=The%20doctrine%20of%20precedent%20is,winning%20and%20losing%20a%20case.> accessed January 9, 2023

Ipsaloquitur, “Gibson v Manchester City Council - Case Summary” ( IPSA LOQUITUR October 22, 2022) <https://ipsaloquitur.com/contract-law/cases/gibson-v-manchester-city-council/> accessed January 9, 2023

Kaur K, “Judicial Precedents in India - Trials & Appeals & Compensation ”( Judicial Precedents In India - Trials & Appeals & Compensation - India February 10, 2020) <https://www.mondaq.com/india/trials-amp-appeals-amp-compensation/882616/judicial-precedents-in-india> accessed January 9, 2023

Kukreja S and Kukreja AS, “Difference between Offer and Invitation to Offer (Treat)” ( Management Study HQ October 24, 2021) <https://www.managementstudyhq.com/offer-and-invitation-to-offer.html> accessed January 9, 2023

Law Corner, “Precedent as a Source of Law and Its Advantages and Disadvantages” ( Lawcorner February 27, 2021) <https://lawcorner.in/precedent-as-a-source-of-law-and-its-advantages-and-disadvantages/#:~:text=Judicial%20precedent%20helps%20the%20court,equality%20and%20fairness%20of%20justice.> accessed January 9, 2023

Lawuk, “Law Reports” ( Faculty of Law 2020) <https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/legal-research-and-mooting-skills-programme/law-reports> accessed January 9, 2023

Lewis S, “Precedent and the Rule of Law” (2021) 41 Oxford Journal of Legal Studies 873

LexisNexis, “Doctrine of Precedent Definition: Legal Glossary” ( LexisNexis 2021) <https://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/legal/glossary/doctrine-of-precedent> accessed January 9, 2023

Libguides, “Oxford Libguides: United Kingdom Law: Cases” ( Cases - United Kingdom Law - Oxford LibGuides at Oxford University 2020) <https://ox.libguides.com/c.php?g=422832&p=2887381> accessed January 9, 2023

Surbhi, “ Difference between Offer and Invitation to Offer (with Examples and Comparison Chart)” ( Key Differences July 26, 2018) <https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-offer-and-invitation-to-offer.html> accessed January 9, 2023

You Might Also Like:-

BSD111 Business Law and Ethics Assignment Sample

Online Assignment Expert: Why Business Law Knowledge is Crucial: Understanding Legal Aspects for Success?

Business Law Assignment Help

Upto 50% Off*
Get A Free Quote in 5 Mins*
Applicable Time Zone is AEST [Sydney, NSW] (GMT+11)
+

Why Us


Complete Confidentiality
All Time Assistance

Get 24x7 instant assistance whenever you need.

Student Friendly Prices
Student Friendly Prices

Get affordable prices for your every assignment.

Before Time Delivery
Before Time Delivery

Assure you to deliver the assignment before the deadline

No Plag No AI
No Plag No AI

Get Plagiarism and AI content free Assignment

Expert Consultation
Expert Consultation

Get direct communication with experts immediately.

Get
500 Words Free
on your assignment today

ezgif

It's Time To Find The Right Expert to Prepare Your Assignment!

Do not let assignment submission deadlines stress you out. Explore our professional assignment writing services with competitive rates today!

Secure Your Assignment!

Online Assignment Expert - Whatsapp Get 50% + 20% EXTRAAADiscount on WhatsApp

refresh