The Honorable Society of Kings Inns

THE HONORABLE SOCIETY OF KINGS INNS

ENTRANCE EXAMINATION

AUGUST 2012

Examination: Contract Law

Date: Wednesday 22 August 2012

Time: 10.00 a.m. – 1.00 p.m.

Internal Examiner: Prof Steve Hedley UCC

External Examiner: Mr James O’Callaghan SC

Instructions:

Candidates must answer Question 1 and any TWO of the remaining questions.

Question 1 carries 50 marks, all other questions carry 25 marks each.

This paper is 4 pages long including the cover sheet. You should check that you have all the pages and inform the invigilator immediately if any are missing.

Q 1. Aoife and Boris are to be married on 1 August; Aoife’s father, Ciaran, has agreed to pay for the reception. Aoife makes arrangements with Deirdre, who runs a local hotel, for a reception after the wedding, with food and drink for 100 guests, and live music. Aoife asks for a specific local band, and Deirdre promises to obtain their services for the reception if possible. Aoife signs a contract for the event on Deirdre’s standard form, and pays Deirdre in advance. She is then reimbursed by Ciaran. She also arranges with Eoin, a photographer, that he will attend the event and take pictures, for which Aoife will pay him.

The reception does not in fact go well. Electrical problems at Deirdre’s hotel ensure that her kitchen can only produce food which is sub-standard, and the guests are most dissatisfied in consequence. The band is not the one Aoife had asked for; Deirdre had not made a note of the band Aoife had requested, and forgot the matter. Aoife and Boris are both distraught. They refuse to pay Eoin, insisting that in the circumstances they do not want his photographs.

Advise Deirdre.

Q 2. Fiona, who had previously worked a good deal of unpaid overtime for her employer Garrett, told Garrett that she was short of money and could not afford to pay the insurance premium on her house unless she could borrow €500. Garrett immediately promised that he would lend her that sum interest-free when the premium fell due, on the understanding that he would be repaid after 6 months. However, Garrett broke his promise, and Fiona could not pay the insurance premium. 2 days after her insurance policy lapsed, Fiona’s house burnt down, uninsured.

Advise Garrett.

Q 3. Henry and Imogen orally agree all the terms of a contract for the sale of Henry’s house to Imogen. Imogen writes the terms down, and Henry signs them, but Imogen then says she would prefer to have the contract checked by her solicitor before she commits herself. Before Imogen receives any reply from her solicitor, Henry announces that he has had second thoughts and does not now intend to sell to Imogen.

Advise her.

Q 4. Jill and Karl are both members of a moderately successful rock band. The current contract between the band members provides for an equal contribution in time and effort from each member, and an equal share of any profits made. In recent months however Karl has become depressed, has been drinking much more than usual, and has been making little contribution to the day-to-day running of the band’s activities. Jill is of the view that the contract between the members should be renegotiated, and is willing to take on a greater share of the responsibilities so long as she also receives a greater share of the profits. However, she also suspects that while Karl will agree to such a renegotiated contract, he is likely subsequently to become resentful and to claim he was bullied into signing it.

Advise Jill how she may best preclude any legal challenge to the renegotiated contract.

Q 5. In relation to any TWO of the following issues, comment on whether the law is in need of reform, illustrating your answer with relevant case law.

(a) In what circumstances is a minor bound by agreements which would be binding if made between adults;

(b) In what circumstances is an agreement invalid as being in restraint of trade;