Free Consent

Section 14-23

Two or more persons are said to be consent when they agree upon the same thing in the same sense

Free Consent defined Coercion Undue Influence Fraud Misrepresentation Mistake

Coercion
Section 15 An agreement the consent to which is caused by coercion is voidable at the option of the party whose consent was so caused

Chikham Amiraju v/s Chikham Seshamma

Techniques of Causing Coercion

Committing or threatening to commit any act forbidden by the IPC Unlawfully detaining or threatening to detain any property

Undue Influence
Section 16 A Contract is said to be induced by undue influence where the relations subsisting between the parties is in a position to dominate the will of the other and uses that position to obtain an unfair advantage over the other

A person is said to dominate the other when

Where he holds a real or apparent authority over the other, or where he stands in a fiduciary relation with the other Where the mental faculties of the party is either temporarily or permanently affected by reason of age, illness or mental or bodily distress

Fraud Section 17

1.

2.

3.

4. 5.

Intent to deceive Suggestion that a fact is true when it is not true and the person making the suggestion knows it is not true Active concealment of a fact by person who has knowledge or belief of the fact Promise made without any intention of performing it Any other act fitted to deceive Any other act or omission as the law specially declares to be fraudulent

Derry V/S Peek

Not Guilty of fraud

Misrepresentation Section 18
1.

2.

3.

The positive assertion, in a manner not warranted by the person making it Any breach of duty which without any intent to deceive, but proves to be wrongly advantageous to the person making it Causing however innocently a party to an agreement to make a mistake as to the thing which is the subject of the agreement

Similarities in Fraud and Misrepresentation

Both render contract voidable There is a false representation in both Where there is a scope of finding out the truth by reasonable diligence the free consent may be attributed

Distinction between Fraud and Misrepresentation

Misrepresentation is innocent whereas fraud always is with an intention to deceive In fraud damages can be claimed whereas in misrepresentation apart for rescinding the contract

Mistake Section 20
Where both the parties to an agreement are under a mistake as to a matter of fact essential to an agreement, an agreement is said to be void