Question

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1.. On October 15th, a Congressional campaign orders a quantity of campaign literature from a local printer. The stated time of delivery is November 2 but there is nothing in the contract saying time is of the essence. November 8 is Election Day. The printer does not deliver the literature until November 9. When the bill arrives, the campaign refuses to pay the printer one cent. The printer contacts you and asks you to file a lawsuit to collect the bill. Explain to the printer what the legal issue is in the case? Apply the law and advise the printer of the best course of action (conclusion).

2.. Allen and Bob complete an oral contract for the sale of land from Allen to Bob for $100,000. Bob pays Allen the $100,000 and then begins to build a home on the land. At this point, Allen says that the deal is off and refuses to convey the deed to Bob. In doing so, Allen relies on the statute of frauds as a defense saying that contracts for the sale of land must be in writing and since this contract is not in writing it is unenforceable. First, explain the application of the statute of frauds to land sales. Second, state the legal issue, apply the law and reach a conclusion as to what will happen. Answer completely.

3.. Amy contracts to have her portrait painted by Herbert for $10,000. Herbert is a well known abstract artist and all of Amy’s friends have had their portrait painted by him. Herbert decides to go to Greece for the summer so he assigns the contract without talking to Amy, to Donald. Donald is another artist with a totally different style than Herbert. Amy is very upset when she finds out about the assignment and sues Herbert for breach of contract. What is the legal issue. Present both sides of the argument from a legal perspective. Reach a conclusion. What is a Judge going to do with Amy's lawsuit?

Answer 1

1

In this case, the contract included that the delivery was supposed take place by November 2. This means irrespective whether the urgency was stated or not, the printer was supposed to perform as per the contract requirement. Since that has not happened, there has been a material breach of the contract. When a material breach happens, the aggrieved party (congressional campaigner) does not need to perform. This means they do not need to pay the printer. A breach of contract has taken place by non-performance from the side of the printer and the campaigner cannot be sued in this matter.

2

Statute of frauds mentions that certain contracts need to be in the writing in order for them to be enforceable by law. One of those is the case of sale of land.

As the contract between them is oral, the contract cannot be enforceable. Thus even if Bob sues Allen for non-performance, the court will not rule in the favor of Bob.

3

This is a case of assignment of contract. In this case the assignor (Herbert) is required to notify Amy about the assignment prior to assigning the performance to Donald. Also in this case a specialized skill is required which cannot be assigned to another party. Thus the assignor has materially altered what is expected under the contract. In such case, the Judge is going to rule in favor of Amy.