The Student Room Group

Please URGENT help needed...! contract law moot tomorrow!

Hi everyone,

Can anyone please help me?
Me and my Junior are just totally confused at the moment, if anyone with any experience or legal background etc can help please could you reply to this bulletin, it would be greatly appreciated... if not just ignore this! haha

Right, here goes....

In the House of Lords

Hurley -v- Grant

Henrietta Hurley, a film star, wanted a summer house and a swimming pool constructed in her back garden. She put the job out to tender and accepted the offer of Geraldine Grant, a building contractor, who agreed to do the work for £5,000. Both G and H knew that this was an unrealistically low price. G having completed the summer house and begun construction of the swimming pool ran out of money and materials for the job. G told H that she could not complete the job unless further capital was made available to her. H, who had hoped to win new roles, was desperate to have the pool completed. She tells G "Dahling you have me over a barrel". H agreed to lend G £3,000 in order to buy the materials necessary to ensure that the pool was completed, the money to be repaid when G secured her next
contract. The pool was completed; the party was a success and H was awarded the starring role in the new movie "Four Funerals and a Car Drive". H tells G, "Dahling you have saved my career. Don't worry about the £3,000". G starts a new project, whereas Hs new film is a complete flop. H sues G for the £3,000 on either of 2 grounds:

* As an ordinary debt
* The money was extorted by duress

Divine J held:

*The rule in Pinnel's case (1602) 5 Co. Rep 117 was modified by Williams v Roffey Brothers [1990] 2 WLR 1153 and therefore the completion of Hs pool was capable of constituting and constitutes a benefit in fact which was sufficient consideration for Hs payment of the extra £3,000

*Further Hs promise to pay £3,000 was not procured by Gs economic duress, because although G exerted illegitimate pressure by threatening to break her contract, Hs will was not overborne by Gs behaviour. Pao On v Lau Yiu [1980] AC 614 applied.


The Court of Appeal upheld that decision of Divine J. H now appeals to the House of Lords on 2 grounds:

* Divine J erred in law in holding that Pinnel's case had been modified by Roffey
* It is not a necessary ingredient in an action for the recovery of money paid under economic duress that the payor's will was overborne.

I am lead counsel for the appellent and i'm dealing with the first contention... though as I said, my Junior is just as confused with her contention too! I'm just not sure as to how Pinnels case is relevant here, as no part payment had occurred? Roffey was distinguished in Re: Selectmove and re-affirmed Foakes v Beer and has only been applied in one case, and that was only because it was for services/goods, as Roffey cannot apply to part payment of debts... I'm confused as to what to include in my argument... instinctively I want to rely on the principle in Stilk v Myrick, but is this a good idea? Should we be talking about promissory estoppel? I don't understand the principle very well though...

Someone please help me if you can... just some direction a.s.a.p. would be nice! My email and everything isn't working from home so this is the first opportunity i've had to request help, hence why its so urgent :frown:
thankee, Sian xxxx
Reply 1
you got your moot problem a day before the moot??
Reply 2
Doubtful :rolleyes:
Subjects:

Consideration
Frustration.
Promissory/Equitable(will be described using either of the terms)Estoppel
N.B. Gereldine's specialist knowledge.
N.B. The courts are not usually looking at whether there is a bargain or not!
Reply 4
I sucked at mootin but there might be something in her saying its ok and that the other one doesn't have to pay the debt can't think exactly what the point behind that is but i'm pretty sure there is one!!
Reply 5
Hi,

im doing the same case for my first year mooting. Do you have any tipson how to get about the case?

I am confused on how to handle the first ground of appeal.

Thanks.
Hi, I have the very same mooting question (I am Junior Appellant), and am also confused and would be grateful for some help.

My Moot is in two days' time and although I've been trying to gets to grips with it for a few days now, Contract Law was my worst subject, and rather than enjoying working on it (as I thought I would), it's really stressing me out.

If someone could help, I would be very grateful, but looking at previous pleas for help, there doesn't appear to have been much response. :frown:

If people don't respond, is there really any point in being signed up?
Original post by Cheryl Rowlands
Hi, I have the very same mooting question (I am Junior Appellant), and am also confused and would be grateful for some help.

My Moot is in two days' time and although I've been trying to gets to grips with it for a few days now, Contract Law was my worst subject, and rather than enjoying working on it (as I thought I would), it's really stressing me out.

If someone could help, I would be very grateful, but looking at previous pleas for help, there doesn't appear to have been much response. :frown:

If people don't respond, is there really any point in being signed up?


Posters are rightfully reluctant to provide answers on a plate for problems that are supposed to develop your understanding of contract law.

Take this in stages.

Debt

What is the contract that H is suing on?

What is G's defence to that contract?

What is H's answer to that defence?

Is that answer good enough? Obviously if you are for H, it is and if you are for G, it isn't.

Duress

What does H need to show to avoid the contract referred to above on the grounds of duress?

Does she get home on the facts found by Devine J?


If you are for H, remember that it is open to you to say Pao On was wrongly decided.
Hi nulli tertius,

Many thanks for your reply. I wasn't asking for a tailor-made answer that I could copy, just some pointers in the right direction. When I signed up for the Moot, I was hoping it would be a Criminal Law case which is my strength (and hopefully, future career), but it turned out to be Contract, which is my weakest subject.

Thank you for your comments and suggestions, which are much appreciated.

Quick Reply