Consideration: Sufficiency and Existing Contractual Duties – Increasing Pacts
Teaching Objectives
In this seminar we will:
Consider the sufficiency of an existing duty
Apply the concepts of Sufficiency, detriment, duress and practical benefit to concrete examples
Identify key ideas from some leading cases, explain their meaning and apply to practical scenarios
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this seminar you should be able to:
Explain the existing duty rule and list exceptions to it
Distinguish promise detriment and promisor benefit approaches to establishing sufficiency
Identify examples of practical benefit and duress
Identify when someone goes beyond their existing contractual duty
Preparation
Read lecture slides on sufficiency of an existing contractual duty
Explain the concept of ‘increasing pacts’ and be able to identify this in a set of facts
Explain the words and identify the ratio in the cases listed in the word cloud overleaf
For every concept, rule or doctrine ensure you have at least one supporting case-law authority – read lecture slides and textbook on past consideration, adequacy and sufficiency to check you have such understanding
Ensure you can select, define, explain and apply all of the following ideas and cases:
Questions for Class Discussion
1 Explain what a ‘pre-existing’ duty is.
Preexisting duty rule is a common-law rule of contract. It says that the rule that performance of an act by which a party is already contractually bound to perform does not constitute valid consideration for a new promise. In other words, a party's offer of a performance already required under an existing contract is an insufficient consideration for modification of the contract.
2 What cases provide examples of the following:
(a) Pre-existing public law duty
Collins V Godfrey
Glasbrook V Glamorgan CC
Ward V Byham
Harris V sheffield united fc
(b) Pre-existing duty owed to a third-party
Shadewell V shadewell
Scotson V Pegg
New zealand shipping V satterthwaite
Pau on V Lau yiu long
(c) Pre-existing contractual duty
Stilk V Myrick
3 What is an ‘increasing pact’? Identify a case which illustrates the idea and explain why.
When someone promises to pay more for the same
Variation to an existing contract
Harris V watson
-2 sails men within the existing contract so there is no new promisee. They could still function and did not go above the existing contractual duty which was required of them.
4 Distinguish sufficiency based upon ‘promisee detriment’ and ‘promisor benefit’
Promisor benefit = some real benefit in kind to the promisor The additional promise has not been extracted under duress.
Promisee detriment =
5 Jill organises a concert at the Guild Hall, engaging Kathleen as a pianist. Paul, who operates a musical instrument hire service, agrees to hire to Jill a Steinway grand piano for three hundred pounds, to be delivered at 3 p.m. on the day of the concert. At 1 p.m. on that day, Paul
