Module 4: Areas of Law

• What are two types of laws that give rise to obligations

  • Contract law and tort law
• Define "obligations" in legal terms.

  • A legal term indicating an enforceable duty of one person vis-à-vis another person or several other persons.
• • How do obligations arise in contract law?
  • Voluntarily, because the party intends to be legally bound.
• • How do obligations arise in tort law?
  • Imposed upon a person independently of its intention, usually because the law wants to attach consequences to wrongful behavior.
• • According to contract law, what is the idea behind "freedom of contract"?
  • The parties are free to decide whether they want a contract, with whom, and what the content should be.
• • What are default rules in contract law?
  • The rules that apply when the parties have not foreseen certain aspects.
• • What are mandatory rules in contract law?
  • The rules that apply even though parties may have agreed otherwise, for the protection of law, public order, morality, and the weaker parties.
• • In contract law, what is the main principle for interpreting a contract?
  • The contract is interpreted in the way which a reasonable person of the same kind as the parties would understand it in the same circumstances.
• • What are examples of mandatory law in contract law?
  • Door-to-door sales, tenant protection, and drug traffic.
• • What are the three stages in the life of a contract?
  • Formation, contents, and execution & termination.
• • What is necessary for a promise to be legally enforceable?
  • The parties must have the intention to enter into a legal relationship and be legally bound.
• • What is a necessary requirement for a binding contract in terms of consent?
  • Offer and acceptance.
• • How is a contract interpreted in terms of consent?
  • In the way a reasonable person of the same kind as the parties would understand it in the same circumstances.
• • In which cases are formalities required in contract law?
  • Gifts (deed required) and certain consumer contracts (must be in writing and comply with information duties).
• • Can the offeror revoke their offer in contract law?
  • Depends on the jurisdiction.
• • What is the general principle regarding the contents of a contract?
  • Parties must perform what they promised.
• • How is the law involved in cases where parties disagree on the agreement?
  • Law is about interpretation; the contract is interpreted in the way a reasonable person would understand it.
• • What may the law intervene in regarding 'unfair' contracts?
  • Fraud, threat, and deficiencies in the formation of the contract.
• • What are the remedies in case of non-performance of a contract?
  • Action for performance/performance claim and action for damages/damage claim.
• • In civil law, when is a party held liable for damages in case of non-performance?
  • Only if the party in breach was at fault.
• • In common law, is specific performance a common remedy for breach of contract?
  • No, damages are the normal action.
• • What are the conditions for termination of a contract as a remedy?
  • The breach should be sufficiently serious, and there may be notice periods and/or compensation.
• • What is the starting point in tort law when damage occurs?
  • "The loss rests where it falls."
• • What is fault liability in tort law?
  • The person who caused the damage, intentionally or negligently, must compensate for it.
• • What is strict liability in tort law?
  • Somebody is liable for damages that were not caused by their own wrongful act.
• • How is tort law defined?
  • "Body of rules determining the circumstances and conditions under which harm suffered by a victim will be borne by another person, frequently the perpetrator of the harm."
• • What is the common law approach in tort law?
  • Different rules fine-tuned to various cases, with a focus on the tort of negligence.
• • What are the four conditions for liability under the tort of negligence?
  • Duty of care, breach of duty, damage, and causation.
• • How does the civil law approach differ in tort law?
  • It is case-based, not limited to a specific class of protected persons, and focuses on fault liability.