Consideration AO1 (OCR)

Consideration

Defined in Currie v Misa as “some right, interest, profit or benefit accruing to one party or some forbearance detriment, loss or responsibility given, suffered or undertaken by the other”

Consideration sufficiency

It has to be sufficient but need not be adequate meaning the consideration does not need to be of market value but has to be of some nominal value (thomas v thomas)

Love and affection

Has not been found to have ‘nominal value’ by judges (white v bluett). However, there are some inconsistencies in the law and one judge found there was consideration when a mother was making her daughter ‘happy’

Consideration must move from the promisee meaning?

Meaning a person cannot sue or be sued under a contract unless they have provided consideration for it themselves (tweddle v atkinson)

Past consideration

Past consideration is not good consideration, which means consideration will not be valid for a future payment if one side of the exchange has already taken place before the agreement had been made

Past consideration exception rule

It is when there is an implied promise to pay for a particular task e.g situations where there is clear, implied prior understanding that C would probably expect some payment at the time of the agreement was made (Re caseys patent)

Case of Lampleigh (past consideration exception)

Clarified the exception of past consideration and held it would be upheld if: at promisors request and the parties understand there will be some sort of reward/benefit to come

Pre existing duty

Performing a pre existing duty is not good consideration for further payment, a pre existing duty is something that the offeree is already legally required to do e.g obligations under other existing contracts

Exception with pre existing duty is not good consideration

If the offerees job becomes almost impossible

Williams v roffey bros

Developed the law further and now also finds consideration for further payment if c prevents the other party suffering a loss or detriment

Public duty is not good consideration for further payment

As a public duty is something the offeree will already be legally required to do under their duty

Exception to public duty is not good consideration

If C does something that goes above and beyond what is already required by their contract then they can be entitled to a further payment