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Introductin To Contract Law
Introductin To Contract Law
Introductin To Contract Law
1950. The remedy of specific performance presupposes the existence of a valid contract
between the parties to the controversy. The terms of the contract must be definite and
certain. This is significant because equity cannot be expected to enforce either an invalid
contract or one that is so vague in its terms that equity cannot determine exactly what it
must order each party to perform. It would be unjust for a court to compel the
performance of a contract according to ambiguous terms interpreted by the court, since
the court might erroneously order what the parties never intended or contemplated.
Based on my understanding of the law of contract, as a general rule, performance of a
contract must be exact and precise and should be accordance to with what the parties
had promised. Section 38(1) of the Contracts Act 1950 provides that the parties to a
contract must either perform or offer to perform their respective promises, unless such
performance has been dispensed with by any law. In order to form a contract agreement
that is enforceable by law, the following six elements must be fulfilled:
Proposal or offer
Acceptance
Consideration
Intention to create legal relations
Capacity to contract
Free consent
Proposal or offer
An offer can be oral or written as long as it is not required to be written by law. It is the
definite expression or an overt action which begins the contract. It is simply what is
offered to another for the return of that person’s promise to act. It cannot be
ambiguous or unclear. It must be spelled out in terms that are specific and certain, such
as the identity and nature of the object which is being offered and under what
conditions and/ or terms it is offered.
Acceptance
As a general proposition of law, the acceptance of the offer made by one party by the
other party is what creates the contract. This acceptance, as a general rule, cannot be
withdrawn, nor can it vary the terms of the offer, or alter it, or modify it. To do so makes
the acceptance a counter-offer. Though this proposition may vary from state to state,
the general rule is that there are no conditional acceptances by law. In fact, by making a
conditional acceptance, the offeree is rejecting the offer. However the offerer, at his
choosing, by act or word which shows acceptance of the counter-offer, can be bound by
the conditions tendered by the offeree. From the newspaper, Wang claimed that Ngan
was interested in co-operating with her on a development project in Xi’an Quijiang,
China, which she initiated and planned. Ngan made an offer to Wang to cooperate with
her on the project. They signed an agreement on 26 February 2007. As a result of the
signing agreement, Wang is presumed to accept the offer.
Consideration
Consideration for a contract may be money or may be another right, interest, or benefit,
or it may be a detriment, loss or responsibility given up to someone else. Consideration
is an absolutely necessary element of a contract. As a word of caution, it should be
noted that consideration has to be expressly agreed upon by both parties to the
contract or it must be expressly implied by the terms of the contract. A potential or
accidental benefit or detriment alone would not be construed as valid consideration.
The consideration must be explicit and sufficient to support the promise to do or not to
do, whatever is applicable. However, it need not be of any particular monetary value.
Mutual promises are adequate and valid consideration as to each party as long as they
are binding. This rule applies to conditional promises as well. As additional clarification,
the general rule is that a promise to act which you are already legally bound to do is not
a sufficient consideration for a contract. The courts determine the application. Under the
signed agreement, Ngan agreed to pay Wang RM13 million as remuneration and 25%
shares in a company called CM Xi’an Qujiang Properties (M) Sdn Bhd. Wang will be
appointed as deputy manager or director to manage the company. The action by Wang
is a good consideration for the promise by Ngan.
It is a basic requirement to the formation of any contract, be it oral or written, that there
has to be a mutual assent or a “meeting of the minds” of the parties on all proposed
terms and essential elements of the contract. It has been held by the courts that there
can be no contract unless all the parties involved intended to enter into one. This intent
is determined by the outward actions or actual words of the parties and not just their
secret intentions or desires. Therefore, mere negotiations to arrive at a mutual
agreement or assent to a contract would not be considered an offer and acceptance
even thought the parties agree on some of the terms which are being negotiated. Both
parties must have intended to enter into the contract and one can not have been misled
by the other. That is why fraud or certain mistakes can make a contract voidable. The
agreement between Wang and Ngan is a business agreement. Therefore, the rebuttable
presumption according to case laws as discussed above would suggest that Wang and
Ngan are intended to be legally bound. Furthermore, no exclusion clause was mention
on the agreement. The signed agreement confirms that both parties intention to be
legally bound.
Capacity to contract
The general presumption of the law is that all people have a capacity to contract. A
person who is trying to avoid a contract would have to plead his or her lack of capacity
to contract against the party who is trying to enforce the contract. Section 11 of the
Contracts Act 1950 provides that “Every person is competent to contract, who is of the
age of majority according to the law to which he is subject, and who is of sound mind,
and is not disqualified from contracting by any law to which he is subject”. It means that
the person who enters into the contract must have the full capacity in terms of age and
mind. The age of majority in Malaysia is 18 years old.
Both Wang and Ngan were older than 18 years old when they enter into the contract.
Section 12 (1) of the Contract Act 1950 provides that “A person is said to be of sound
mind for the purpose of making a contract if, at the time when he makes it, he is
capable of understanding it and of forming a rational judgment as to its effect upon his
interests.” As a result, the agreement is valid.
Free consent
Coercion is described in Section 15 of the Contracts Act 1950 as the “the committing, or
threatening to commit any act forbidden by the Penal Code, or the unlawful detaining
or threatening to detain, any property, to the prejudice of any person whatever, with the
intention of causing any person to enter into an agreement”. Undue influence in Section
16 of Contract Act 1950 is said to exist when “the relations subsisting between the
parties are such that one of 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”. Section 17 of the
Contracts Act 1950 explains that fraud refers to acts committed by a party to a contract
with the intent to deceive the other contracting party. Misrepresentation would refer to
untrue made by a representor and that induce the other to enter into a contract.
Mistake under the Contract Act 1950 includes a mistake as to a matter of fact (by one or
both parties) and mistake as to any law in force or not in force in Malaysia.The
agreement made between Wang and Ngan did not consist of coercion, under influence,
fraud, misrepresentation and mistake. So, both parties entered into the contract on their
own free will and free of consent.The terms and conditions on the agreement must be
clear and certain because an uncertain agreement is voidable. Also, the business that
Wang and Ngan are doing does not involve illegal activity. Since all the elements above
are present in the dealing
between Wang and Ngan, the formation of the signed contract on Feb 26, 2007 is
valid.In this case, Tan Sri Ngan did not perform his promises as stated in the agreement
signed by both Ngan and Wang. Therefore, Wang appointed a lawyer to sue Ngan for
the breach of contracts and seek for the compensation as promised in the agreement of
RM13mil and other losses. This case is similar with the case of:
LIM YOH v. ASTANA STRATEGI (M) SDN. BHD. & ANOR[1998] 3 M.L.J 117,
High Court.
The plaintiff was one of the 37 co-proprietors of all that piece of land known as Lot 579
held under Grant No. 2958 (now Geran No. 16359), Mukim Ayer Panas, Daerah Jasin,
Malacca. By a sale and purchase agreement dated 20 January 1996 (‘the agreement’) she
agreed to sell her 11742/335540 undivided shares therein to the first defendant for a
sum of RM245,407.80. Clause 19 of the agreement provides that:
Time whenever mentioned shall in all respects be of the essence of the contract.
Upon execution of the agreement the first defendant paid the plaintiff a deposit of
RM24,540.78. With regard to payment of the balance the second schedule to the
agreement provides that:
Section 38(1) of the Act provides that the parties to a contract must either perform, or
offer to perform, their respective promises, unless the performance is dispensed with or
excused under the Act, or of any other law. Section 56 of the Act regulates the position
when time is of the essence of a contract. It reads as follows:
56.(1) When a party to a contract promises to do a certain thing at or before a specified
time, or certain things at or before specified times, and fails to do any such thing at or
before the specified time, the contract, or so much of it as has not been performed,
becomes voidable at the option of the promisee, if the intention of the parties was that
time should be of the essence of the contract.
(2) if it was not the intention of the parties that time should be of the essence of the
contract, the contract does not become voidable by the failure to do the thing at or
before the specified time, but the promisee is entitled to compensation from the
promisor for any loss occasioned to him by the failure.
(3) if, in case of a contract voidable on account of the promisor’s failure to perform his
promise at the time agreed the promisee accepts performance of the promise at any
time other than that agreed, the promisee cannot claim compensation for any loss
occasioned by the non-performance of the promise at the time agreed, unless, at the
time of the acceptance, he gives notice to the promisor of his intention to do so. These
provisions of our law are akin to the distinction in English law between a condition the
breach of which entitles the other party to treat himself as discharged from liability
under the contract and a warranty which merely gives him a right to damages.
There are five remedies for breach of contract that possible for Wang to claim:
Rescission of contract
Damages
Specific Performance
Injunction
Quantum Meruit
Rescission of contract
Under section 40 of contract law, rescission is said “when a party to a contract has
refused to perform, or disabled himself from performing, his promise in its entirety, the
promisee may put an end to the contract unless he has signified, by words or conduct,
his acquiescence in its continuance”. Any non performance contract of either party will
entitle the other party to rescind the contract. For example in the case of :
Travelsight (M) Sdn Bhd & Anor v Atlas Corp Sdn Bhd [2003] 6 MLJ 658
Pursuant to a sale and purchase agreement dated 15 March 1996, the first plaintiff
agreed to purchase from the defendant a piece of property known as suite no: 1202,
Tower No: B, Wisma Pantai, Kuala Lumpur (hereinafter referred to as the said “property”)
for the purchase price of RM816,696 subject to the terms and conditions as contained in
the sale and purchase agreement (hereinafter referred to as the said “agreement”).
Credit facilities were extended by the second plaintiff – RHB Bank Berhad, to the first
defendant and so, pursuant to a loan agreement cum deed of assignment dated 6
December 1996 the first plaintiff had assigned all its rights to the said agreement to the
second plaintiff absolutely.
Damages
Section 74 of Contract Act 1950 ,an innocent party may claim damages from the party in
breach in respect of all breaches of contract. The damages may be nominal or
substantial. Nominal damages are awarded where the innocent party has suffered no
loss as a result of the other’s breach and substantial damages are awarded as monetary
compensation for loss suffered as a result of the other party’s breach.For an innocent
party to obtain substantial damages he must show that he has suffered loss as a result
of the breach (remoteness) and the amount of his loss (measure). It is up to the party in
breach to argue that the innocent party has failed to mitigate his loss. This is an
equitable remedy granted at the court’s discretion.
Specific performance
Specific performance is a discretionary remedy granted by the court, and it is under the
Specific Relief Act 1950. It is a decree by the court to compel a party to perform his
contractual obligations. It is usually only ordered where damages are not an adequate
remedy It is a general rule that specific performance will not be ordered if the contract
requires performance or constant supervision over a period of time and the obligations
in the contract are not clearly defined. Specific performance is often ordered in relation
to building contracts because the contract deals with results rather than the carrying on
of an activity over a period of time and it usually defines the work to be completed with
certainty
Injunction
Injunction is classified under Part III of the Specific Relief Act 1950 as ‘Preventive Relief’.
It is an equitable remedy and therefore only granted at the discretion of the court. It is
awarded in circumstances where damages would not be an adequate remedy to
compensate the claimant because the claimant needs to restrain the defendant from
starting or continuing a breach of a negative contractual undertaking (prohibitory
injunction) or needs to compel performance of a positive contractual obligation
(mandatory injunction). In exercising its discretion the court will consider the same
factors as above for specific performance and will use the balance of convenience test
(weighing the benefit to the injured party and the detriment to the other party). An
injunction will not be granted if its effect would be to compel a party to do something
which he could not have been ordered to do by a decree of specific performance.
Quasi-Meruit
Co (1997) 85 BLR 77
The instructions given did not constitute authorized variations of the subcontract works
because they required work to be done outside the scope of the subcontract entitling
the Subcontractor to payment on aquantum meruit basis.
Based on the above information, the claimant may recover damages for other expenses
incurred as the result of the breach of contract. They might claim for loss of profit as in
the case of :
The lose which arises naturally resulting from the breach by the defendant
The claimant can claim for special damages such as the difference between the prices of
goods as contracted as in the case of: East Asiatic Co. Ltd v. Othman [1966] 2 MLJ 38. As
the result of breach of contract by Ngan, Wang can claim up to RM13 million of the
remuneration and the 25% shares in CM Xian Qujiang Properties Sdn Bhd. In the mean
time, Wang can claim for the loss of salary and income due to Ngan failed to appoint
her as the deputy manager or director in the company. The salary income loss is
measureable and it is direct loss to Wang. So, it is claimable. Lastly, Wang can claim up
to RM1 mil as in the agreement when Ngan fail to meet the terms of the contract.
It is forbidden by law
Under the Contract Act 1950 section 24(e) “Any contract which its consideration or
object is regarded as immoral or opposed to public policy is void under the law”.
Section 24 illustration (k) shows an example of Immoral Contract. Section 24 illustration
(f) shows an example of against public policy. A contract involve in illegal business is
unenforceable by law as in section 24(a). Moreover, an agreement that will hurt other
people or properties will be considered void too.
For this case, for instance producing materials that will compete with the Malaysian
products, the contract will be held as legal and is enforceable by law provided that the
producing material does not involve in any of the above criteria. The contract is
enforceable by law as long as the producing materials are legal, does not hurt others,
and not against the public policy. For Example in the case of :
The Aspinall Curzon Ltd v Khoo Teng Hock [1991] 2 MLJ 484
This case raised the question of what is known as a performance bond in relation to an
interlocutory injunction to prevent a call or demand on such performance bond
Ngan may use the discharge by impossibility as the defense to put forward the suit too.
Section 57(2) of Contract Act 1950 said that “A contract to do an act which, after the
contract is made, becomes impossible, or by reason of some event which the promisor
could not prevent, unlawful, becomes void when the act becomes impossible or
unlawful”. An impossible action can occur during the term of the contract after the
contract is made and the contract is void at the point the action becomes impossible.
CM Xian Qujing Properties (M) Sdn. Bhd might be closed down after the contract. As a
result, Ngan could not provide 25% of the share in this company as per the discharge by
impossibility clause.
Partnership Act 1961 section 26 said that all the partners are entitled to share equally in
the capital and profits of the business, and must contribute equally towards the losses,
whether of capital or otherwise, sustained by the firm. The partners will bear the losses
together, adopt profit sharing policy. Section 26(b) said that every partner who made
any payment and incurred personal liabilities in the course of the firm’s business is
entitled to be indemnified by the firm. a partner making, for the purposes of the
partnership, any actual payment or advance beyond the amount of capital which he has
agreed to subscribe, is entitled to interest at the rate of eight per cent per annum from
the date of the payment or advance. However, as a partner, Wang and Ngan is no
entitle to interest on capital before the ascertainment of profits. As stated in Section
26(e) of Partnership Act 1961, every partner may take part in the management of the
partnership business, which means Wang and Ngan have equal responsibilities in
managing their company. According to the Partnership Act 1961, no partner is entitled
to remuneration for acting in the partnership business. If any one of Wang or Ngan
would like to introduce a new partner into their business, he or she shall get the consent
of the other partner. Any difference arising as to ordinary matters connected with the
partnership business may be decided by a majority of the partners, but no change may
be made in the nature of the partnership business without the consent of all existing
partners. The accounting and financial books are to be kept at the place of partnership
business, or at the principal place if there is more than one place of business.
As a business partner, Wang and Ngan must be honest to each other because the
partnership relationship is based on the principle of uberrimae fidei (utmost good faith).
Under section 30 of Partnership Act 1961, “Partners are bound to render true accounts
and full information of all things affecting the partnership to any partner or his legal
representatives”. In the case of :
the court held that the partner who had the information must disclose it. Every partner
must account to the firm for any benefit derived by him, without the consent of the
other partners, from any transaction concerning the partnership or from any use by him
of the partnership property, name, or business connection.
As a partner each of them must account to the company for any secret profit or benefit
derived by him. Lastly, Wang or Ngan could not operate another business which will
direct compete with their current business or in the same business nature.
Pernas Trading. Sdn Bhd v Persatuan Peladang Bakti Melaka [1979] 2 MLJ 124
In this case the appellants sued the respondents for a sum of $22,997.76 being the
balance of the price of chemicals and fertilisers sold and delivered by the appellants to
the respondents. In their defence, the respondents denied liability and went on to claim
that it was made known to the appellants at the time of the order that the ultimate
buyer was Syahazam Sdn Bhd; in other words the defendants claimed that in the
purchase of these goods they were agents for Syahazam Sdn Bhd.