Write a critical evaluation of the elements of any two property offences
Write a critical evaluation of the elements of any two property offences. The law on theft is found under Sections 1 to 6 of the Theft Act 1968. All these sections must be established in order for a person to be held liable for Theft. Section 1 defines theft as "dishonestly appropriating property belonging to another with intention to permanently deprive the other of it." The idea of this offence was for it to be straightforward and simple to understand so that regular citizens could have access, however this has proved otherwise. There seems to be grave issues within sections 1-6 that must be altered for a fairer outcome on theft as a criminal act. The main issues I will be discussing are that of Appropriation under section 3 of the Theft Act 1968, where the law on appropriation and gifts is unreasonable and unjust, the civil and criminal law overlaps and the mens rea for the Theft Act 1968 under section 2and 6; which provides no clear definition as to what is deemed 'dishonest'. Furthermore the responsibility placed on the jury due to the Ghosh test is much criticised as this is considered a technical area which must be left to the judges to decide on, so there is no discrepancy. Firstly the law on appropriation and gifts under Section 3 of the Theft Act 1968 can be seen as harsh and unreasonable. The definition of appropriation is 'any assumption by a person of the
The time has come for the abolition of civil juries Discuss.
"The time has come for the abolition of civil juries" Discuss. There has been an increase in the number of cases filed in recent times and the time required for each tries has prompted concern amongst the bench, bar and the public. Lord Goldsmith recently announced reforms for complex fraud cases, which would mean that a judge sitting alone can convict defendants without the decision being made by a jury. The government's main concern for this abolition is that it will increase costs and also increase waiting times. In recent time's big fraud trials has cost the taxpayer millions of pounds. One problem is perceived to be the idea of trials lasting several months for jurors. Not many people can commit themselves to the time involved and those who can are felt to be unrepresentative of the public at large. The advantage is that White-collar fraudsters would not escape justice through failings in the legal system. The judge-only trials would be shorter, more efficient and maybe more effective. The problems of handling complex fraud trials have been highlighted over a number of years e.g. by Lord Justice Auld. There are other cases that might benefit from being heard without a jury. Trials involving conflicting medical experts, such as the cases involving parents accused of killing their babies, are equally impossible for a jury to assess, and should therefore be handled by
Four ways in which a contract may be discharged.
DISCHARGE OF THE CONTRACT. There are four ways in which a contract may be discharged. > Agreement. > Performance. > Frustration. > Breach. . DISCHARGE BY AGREEMENT. A contract can be discharged in precisely the same way it was formed. Notice that there must be consideration from both sides. 2. DISCHARGE BY PERFORMANCE. Complete and proper performance will discharge both parties. The original rule was that performance must be precise and exact. Re Moore & Co Ltd and Landauer & Co [1921] 2 KB 519. A contract was drawn up for the sale of tinned fruit stating that the tins were to be packed 30 tins to a case. When the goods arrived, although the correct number of tins was delivered, they were packed in cases of only 24 tins. This could lead to unjust results. Cutter v Powell (1795) 6 Term Rep 320. The defendant agreed to pay Cutter 30 guineas provided he executed his duties as second mate on a voyage from Kingston, Jamaica to Liverpool. Cutter began the voyage but died when the ship was 19 days short of Liverpool. Cutter's widow claimed a portion of the wages. The courts have established a number of equitable principles with the aim of achieving justice between the parties. (a) Substantial Performance. If the contract has been substantially performed the innocent party cannot treat himself as discharged but may be able to counter-claim his loss sustained by
Expressed Terms
Barry Problem This problem is related to express terms. These are terms which the parties write down or agree to orally. The terms within a contract have been sub-divided into conditions which is a major term and warranties which are a minor term. Conditions are vital terms of the contract which, if broken, entitles the injured party to repudiate the contract. It was defined by Lord Justice Fletcher Moulton in Wallis v Pratt as 'An obligation which goes directly to the substance of the contract that its non-performance may fairly be considered by the other party as a substantial failure to perform the contract at all'. Warranties are a subsidiary term of the contract and give rise to an action in damages only. It was defined in Wallis v Pratt as 'An obligation which, though it must be performed, does not go to the root of the contract.' Whether a term is a condition or a warranty is a question of the intention of the parties to be deduced from the circumstances of the cases. A clear example is given by Justice Blackburn who ruled on two similar cases within months of one another. In the case of Bettini v Gye, the warranty cannot be repudiated, but may claim damages, whereas with Poussard v Spiers the condition can both repudiate and claim damages. The term, 'the machine is able to pick potatoes at the rate of 100 per minute' is a condition which goes to the root of
Postal Acceptance Rule
Postal Acceptance Rule Contract is formed at the time and place an acceptance is communicated to the offeror. An acceptance must correspond to the offer. There is no particular method of acceptance prescribed by law. The appropriate method of acceptance will depend on the fact of each situation. The offerees may find themselves faced with two types of situation. First the offer may dictate a method of acceptance. It may indicate that acceptance should be sent by return fax by a certain date. The second broad category is where there is no indication in the offer of an appropriate method of acceptance. The general rule followed by offeree is that acceptance may be given by the same or an equally expedient method as adopted for the making of the offer. Hence it follows that until the acceptance is received by the offeror the offer may be revoked. In the late 19th century an exception to the general agreement for communication of an acceptance arose in order to avoid the extraordinary and mischievous consequences that would follow if it might be held that the offer might be revoked at any time until the letter accepting it had actually been received. This is the postal acceptance rule. The rule as accepted in Australia is "Where the circumstances are such that it must have been within the contemplation of the parties that, according to the ordinary usages of mankind, the post
Conveyancing: Practice and Procedure.
Conveyancing: Practice and Procedure Conveyancing matters are usually sales, purchases, or simultaneous sales and purchases. Where there is a simultaneous sale and purchase we would most strongly advise you to instruct a solicitor. This is because if all the procedures are not carried out correctly someone could be left without a roof over their head in which case, if it is due to some fault of yours, you could be held responsible for damages. The following is a brief outline of the process of conveyancing in the case of a purchase and of a sale, as a solicitor would carry them out. It will give you an insight into what is involved if you were to attempt to do it yourself, and in the case of your instructing a solicitor, it will at least give you some idea of what your solicitor is supposed to be doing for you. Purchasing a Property It is important to bear in mind that there are two distinct stages in buying a property: (1) Exchange of Contracts. This is where both parties have agreed to the transaction, and the terms of it, and they have signed and exchanged contract documents. Once this has been done both parties are committed to the transaction and will be liable for penalties in the event of their non-performance of the contractual terms. Prior to Exchange of Contracts there is no binding agreement, even if the parties have verbally agreed to proceed. (2) Completion.
Stop, search and arrest
Assignment 1.1 By Roxanne Slevin ) The main piece of legislation regulating police powers is the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE). The act was passed due to the miscarriage of justice in 1980, when a man (Maxwell Confait) was murdered. He had been strangled to death with an electrical flex in a burning house. Three boys at the age of fourteen, fifteen and eighteen were charged with the murder; however, three years later they were released after the Fisher report concluded they had nothing to with the murder. In the case of Jack, there are many things to consider about the legality of the actions of the police. Code A Under section 1 of PACE, the police officer was legally allowed to search Jack as there was a reasonable suspicion; this was due to the fact that the patrol officer was looking for suspects that were vandalising bus shelters, and where jack was acting suspiciously this is therefore reasonable. On the other hand, if it had been on the basis of personal factors, this would have been seen as discrimination and therefore, would have been illegal. Before the search begun, the police officer would have had to indentify himself and the police station of where he/she is based and tell the person to be searched the grounds for the search. Plus, If the police officer is not in uniform, then the officer must provide documentary identification, under
Establish whether or not there is a contract between Hettie and Barbara.
The first issue to consider in order to establish whether or not there is a contract between Hettie and Barbara is to define a contract. Also, it will be useful to explain the concept of offer and acceptance, which will lead to the conclusion of whether there is a contract between the two parties, Barbara and Hettie for the sale of the grand piano. The standard definition of contract by English lawyers is that a contract is an agreement which is legally enforceable or legally recognized as creating a duty. However, one widely used definition is that in the American Restatement of Contracts: A contract is a promise or a set of promises for the breach of which the law gives a remedy, or the performance of which the law in some way recognises as a duty.1 In other words, a contract is essentially a two-sided bargain which can only be concluded by the action of both parties. An offer is a clear and unambiguous statement of the terms upon which the offeror is willing to contract, should the person or persons to whom the offer is addressed decide to accept. An offer may be made expressly, but it may equally be implied from the offeror's language, or it may be inferred from his conduct. An offer can be terminated before the offeree validly accepts the offer, as long as it is communicated to the offeree. An acceptance is an unqualified assent to the terms of the offer, which must
"There are occasions where terms are implied into contracts which have never been discussed by the parties. Critically consider the circumstances in which this is likely to occur"
"There are occasions where terms are implied into contracts which have never been discussed by the parties. Critically consider the circumstances in which this is likely to occur" The attitude of the courts towards terms in contracts has changed significantly from the 19th century up to the 21st century. The law of contract was previously governed by the maxim caveat emptor (let the buyer beware). It was rarely considered that there are circumstances where one party will be of inferior bargaining power. Terms will implied for one of two reasons: because a court in a later dispute is trying to give effect to a presumed intention of the parties, even though these intentions have not been expressly stated by the parties (terms implied by fact); or because the law demands that certain obligations are to be included in a contract irrespective of whether the parties have agreed on them or would naturally include them. Usually this will be the result of a statutory provision aimed to protect a particular group or level an imbalance of bargaining power - but it can also be by operation of the common law. Terms implied by fact are usually done so on the basis of individual court cases. The courts have implied term by fact in a variety of circumstances, the first being terms implied by custom or habit. This is governed by an old maxim that custom hardens into right and this was
Legal advice for Equipment Hire Limited.
To: Equipment Hire Limited From: XXX Legal Advisors Subject: Legal Advice Date: 02/06/04 Abstract Equipment Hire Limited (EHL) is a business whose service is to hire out plant and equipment to both business and individuals. Sunil, a window cleaner by trade, regularly hires ladders from EHL. Sunil hired a ladder from the company to paint the outside of his house upon which he paid £50 deposit and was issued with a receipt stating an exclusion cause: 'Conditions of Hire: EHL accepts no responsibility for any loss or damage suffered as a result of use of the equipment. Hirers use the equipment at their own risk' Unfortunately due to a defect, Sunil fell of the ladder and landed on his personal radio, which was irreparably damaged, and suffered a broken leg. EHL seek legal advice as to their liability for damages, if any, concerning Sunil's broken leg and the damaged stereo. .0 Introduction To establish damages owing in the incident concerning the client, EHL, and their customer Sunil, the following report aims to advise EHL and distinguish differences in liability of damages regarding Sunil as a consumer and as a business. In this case EHL are attempting to exclude liability for damages with their exclusion cause. This report explores the legal rules that control contracts for The Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982, The Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 and The
