9084 Law — Unit 4.1: Offer
1. Formation of Contract
2. Unilateral & Bilateral Contract
3. Invitation to treat
4. Offer
5. How long does an offer last?
6. Withdrawal of offer
7. Specific Types of Contracts
Table of Contents
Page No.
1. Formation of Contract 1
2. Unilateral & Bilateral Contracts 1
3. Invitation To Treat 1-4
4. Offer 4
5. How Long Does A Offer Last? 4-5
6. Withdrawal of Offer 5-7
7. Special Types of Contracts 7-9
, Formation of Contract
• A contract is an agreement, enforceable by law, between two or more parties to do or to
abstain from doing an act & which intends to create legal relations.
• The parties must have given something of value as consideration in return for any benefit
derived from the agreement
• For a contract to exist, usually one party must have made an offer, & the other must have
accepted it.
• Once acceptance takes effect, a contract will usually be binding both parties, & the rules of
offer & acceptance are typically used to pinpoint when a series of negotiations has passed
that point, in order to decide whether the parties are obliged to fulfil their promises.
Unilateral & bilateral contracts
Bilateral
• This means that each party takes on an obligation, usually by promising the other
something.
Unilateral
• This means that only one party assumes an obligation.
• In Great Nothern Railway Co v Witham, to reward someone £100 to walk from London to
York.
Invitation to treat
• An offer must be distinguished from an invitation to treat.
• Invitation to treat: is an attempt to stimulate interest without any intention to be bound, it
is an invitation to make an offer.
• Hence, an acceptance of an invitation to treat is in fact an offer.
• Examples of invitation to treat:
A. Display good with price tag
B. Auctions
C. An invitation for tenders
D. Advertisements
E. Timetables and tickets for transport
• Gibson v Manchester City Council
o The HOL ruled that the Council has not made an offer; the letter giving purchase
price was merely one step in the negotiations for a contract & amounted to an
invitation to treat.
• Storer v Manchester City Council
o The court held that a there is a binding contract when Mr Storer signed the
Agreement & returned it.
Advertisements
• Advertisement for unilateral contracts
o Advertisements for unilateral contract are advertisements offering rewards such as
for returning of lost property, or for information of leading to the arrest or
conviction of a criminal.
o They are usually treated as offers, as the contract can normally be accepted without
any need for further negotiations between the parties, & the person making the
advertisement intends to be bound by it.
o Carlil v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co
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