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Business Law A: Tutorial Information

Please note that tutorials are compulsory and students should make every
effort to attend. In addition, answer sheets will only be available in the
tutorials and will NOT be available via Moodle.

Tutorial w/c 28 October The Law of Contract I: Formation of


1 and 4 November Contract & Consideration
Tutorial w/c 11 The Law of Contract II: Terms and
2 November and defects of contract
18 November
Tutorial w/c 25 The Law of Contract III: Breach of
3 November and 2 contract & Remedies
December
Tutorial w/c 9 December Law of Tort and Employment Law
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Students should sign up for one of the available tutorial groups


via Moodle.

The tutorial groups will be available to register from Monday 7 October.


Please check the information for your group carefully, as the room for the
tutorial may not be the same for each tutorial.

Once you have signed up for a group, you should make every effort to
attend the time and location specified for that group. Changes will only be
granted in exceptional circumstances.

There will be 12 tutorial groups:

Group 1 Tuesdays 1-2pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School


South on 29 October
Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 12 November
Tutorial 3= C02 Business School
South on 26 November
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 2 Tuesdays 2-3pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School
South on 29 October

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Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 12 November
Tutorial 3= C02 Business School
South on 26 November
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 3 Tuesdays 3-4pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School
South on 29 October
Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 12 November
Tutorial 3= C02 Business School
South on 26 November
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 4 Tuesdays 5-6pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School
South on 29 October
Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 12 November
Tutorial 3= C02 Business School
South on 26 November
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 5 Wednesdays 9- Tutorial 1= A07 Business School
10am South on 30 October
Tutorial 2= A07 Business School
South on 13 November
Tutorial 3= A07 Business School
South on 27 November
Tutorial 4= B18 Amenities on 11
December.
Group 6 Wednesdays 1-2pm Tutorial 1= B18 Amenities on 30
October
Tutorial 2= B46 Dearing on 13
November
Tutorial 3= B46 Dearing on 27
November
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 11

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December.
Group 7 Tuesdays 1-2pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School
South on 5 November
Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 19 November
Tutorial 3= A07 Business School
South on 3 December
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 8 Tuesdays 2-3pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School
South on 5 November
Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 19 November
Tutorial 3= C01 Business School
South on 3 December
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 9 Tuesdays 3-4pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School
South on 5 November
Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 19 November
Tutorial 3= C01 Business School
South on 3 December
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 10 Tuesdays 5-6pm Tutorial 1= C02 Business School
South on 5 November
Tutorial 2= C02 Business School
South on 19 November
Tutorial 3= C01 Business School
South on 3 December
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 10
December.
Group 11 Wednesdays 9- Tutorial 1= A07 Business School
10am South on 6 November
Tutorial 2= A07 Business School

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South on 20 November
Tutorial 3= A07 Business School
South on 4 December
Tutorial 4= B18 Amenities on 11
December.
Group 12 Wednesdays 1-2pm Tutorial 1= B46 Dearing on 6
November
Tutorial 2= B46 Dearing on 20
November
Tutorial 3= B46 Dearing on 4
December
Tutorial 4= C42 Dearing on 11
December.

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Tutorial 1: Law of Contract I- Formation of Contract & Consideration

1 Rosie and Jim are shopping in Cashsavers, a local electronics store.

Rosie notices a digital camera on the shelf which has a price tag on it of
1.99. She decides to buy it, but when she takes it to the checkout she is
told that the camera should actually have been priced at 199.

Meanwhile, Jim is approached by a member of staff handing out leaflets


stating: Free disposable camera for any shopper who completes our
customer satisfaction questionnaire for today only!

Jim completes the questionnaire but is then told that unfortunately,


Cashsavers have run out of the disposable cameras due to a high number
of shoppers completing the survey already.

Advise Rosie and Jim as to whether they have valid contracts with
Cashsavers.

(taken from resit examination 2008/9)

2 Bill is the proprietor of an antiques shop. On Thursday, he placed an


advert in the Antiques Gazette, which reads as follows:

For sale, Mahogany Table circa 1780, English, 2,500.

Alan read the advert on Friday and telephoned Bill saying, I need such a
table for a client, but I can only pay 2,000. Bill replied that he could not
accept less than 2,250, but stated that he would not sell the table to
anyone else before Wednesday, while Alan considered the matter.

On Monday, Alan rang Bill, but Bill had closed his shop to go to an auction.
Alan therefore sent a fax message which was received on Bills fax machine.
In the message, Alan agreed to buy the table for 2,250. Later that day,
Mary, Bills cleaner, accidentally dropped the fax message into the waste bin
before Bill had read it.

While at the auction, Bill mentioned the mahogany table to another dealer,
Tom, who immediately agreed to buy it for 2,300. The next day, Tom
happened to meet Alan in the local supermarket and told Alan of his
extraordinary luck in acquiring the table for 2,300. Alan went home and
immediately posted a letter to Bill, in which he agreed to buy the table for
2,250. That same afternoon Bill had written to Alan stating that he was no
longer willing to sell the table for 2,250.

Advise Alan.

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(adapted from examination 2003/4)

3 In November 2010, Parkfields Properties Ltd employ Bobby Builders


Ltd to build a five-storey shopping centre for 50 million. The contract
between Parkfields and Bobby Builders states that the shopping centre
must be completed by September 2012.

After twelve months, work on the building falls behind schedule. Bobby
Builders inform Parkfields that they are in financial difficulties and will not
be able to complete the shopping centre on time. As Parkfields are keen
to open the shopping centre in time for a holiday shopping carnival they
have advertised, they offer to pay Bobby Builders an additional 500,000
to ensure that the building is completed on time. Bobby Builders agree to
this arrangement and continue with the building work.

In July 2012, just before the shopping centre is completed, Parkfields


inform Bobby Builders that they cannot afford to pay the additional
500,000, but will offer 50,000 as a final settlement.

Bobby Builders accepts the 50,000 payment as they are worried that
otherwise they wont receive any money, but they have now heard that
Parkfields are making healthy profits from the new shopping centre and
Bobby Builders would now like to claim the full 500,000 that was initially
promised to them.

Advise Bobby Builders Ltd.

(taken from examination 2012/13)

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Tutorial 2: Law of Contract II- Terms and Defects of Contract

1 Arthur is planning a romantic getaway for himself and his wife,


Jane, and reserves a deluxe room at the Royal Hotel in Tipmouth-
on-Sea. On their arrival, they check in at reception and are asked
to sign a Confirmation Slip, which contains the following clause:

The Royal Hotel cannot be held responsible for any injury to


guests while on hotel premises, nor for loss of or damage to
guests property from fire, theft or any other cause.

Arthur signs the confirmation slip and completes payment for the
room. Arthur and Jane have a wonderful stay until the final evening
when a fire breaks out due to faulty wiring. Arthur suffers minor burns
and smoke inhalation. Jane is physically uninjured but her jewellery
and vintage dresses worth 3000 are destroyed by the fire.

a They now wish to bring a claim against the hotel. Advise


them.

b How would your answer be different if the clause had been


placed on the back of the door of their hotel room rather
than in a confirmation slip?

(taken from examination 2009/10)

2 Tracy established and has built up a relatively successful, high-


street accountancy rm. She is due to retire in six months, so
decides to sell the rm.

She is approached by Jeff, who expresses interest in purchasing the


rm and asks why the rm has been so successful. Tracy replies
that it is because:

There are no other accountancy rms within 30 miles. This


business will make you a fortune. I believe the annual level of prot
is around 1.2 million.

Jeff asks his accountant, Chloe, to verify Tracys stated level of


prots. Chloe conrms Tracys statement, but, in fact, the rm only
makes around 100,000 prot per year. Jeff asks for a few weeks to
think it over.

Tracy then discovers that Ernst & Waterhouse, a multinational


accountancy rm, is due to open an ofce close to her rm. She
does not inform Jeff of this. Jeff agrees to purchase the rm and
subsequently discovers the true level of prot, as well as the

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opening of the rival ofce.

Advise Jeff.
(taken from examination 2012/13)

3 May advertises to sell her valuable violin. Gary visits May explaining
that he would like to buy the violin, and they agree on a price. Gary
produces a cheque book, but May hesitates, saying that she would
prefer cash. Gary then replies, Look, you can see who I am, and
produces various items of identity, bearing the same surname as a
famous musician. May is embarrassed and agrees to take the
cheque handing over the violin to Gary.

A few days later May is contacted by her bank, who informs her that
the cheque from Gary is worthless, and that Gary cannot be traced.
May is upset at this and decides to go out for a walk. On her way to
a park May is surprised to see the same violin for sale in the window
of a musical instrument shop, MusicStore. She tries to recover the
violin from MusicStore, but they claim that they paid a good price
for it from someone going abroad, and would certainly not just give
it back to her.

Advise May.
(taken from UNNC resit examination 2009/10)

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Tutorial 3: Law of Contract III- Breach of Contract & Remedies

1 Bob and Brian are huge rollercoaster fans. They discover that
several classic rollercoasters will be temporarily available at a theme
park, Olivers Kingdom, during October.

Betty owns a flat in the village overlooking Olivers Kingdom and


she enters into a contract with Bob and Brian to rent her flat for
three days, in order to access the theme park and ride the
rollercoasters.

Bob and Brian pay a deposit of 100, with 200 payable on their
arrival. Betty spends a lot of time getting the flat ready for their
stay and also purchases two single beds to replace the existing
double bed in the master bedroom at a cost of 150.

However, during September, Bob and Brian discover that the classic
rollercoasters will not be coming to Olivers Kingdom due to health
and safety concerns, so they now want to cancel their stay at
Bettys flat.

Advise Bob and Brian.


(taken from resit examination 2008/9)

2 Catrin deals in the supply of home-made cakes. Her cakes are in


high demand and are even more so in December when the
Christmas season begins. In November, she decided to purchase an
industrial oven to increase the productivity of her business.

Catrin contracted with Pro-Oven Ltd for the supply of a custom-built


oven created to meet the needs of her cake-making process, to be
delivered by November 30th. In breach of contract, Pro-Oven Ltd
was a month late in delivering the oven.

Catrin could have hired an oven from a local supplier, BakeNice Co


to cover the period of delayed delivery, but she was concerned that
it would not produce cakes of the same quality as the custom-built
oven.

Catrin is seeking to recover for the additional profit she could have
made during the Christmas season with the new machine. Her
claims also include the loss of an unusually profitable Christmas
order which she was unable to take on because she did not have the
increased capacity which the new oven would have provided.

Advise Catrin.
(taken from examination 2011/12)

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3 Barbara is a self-employed decorator who also does general
maintenance work. Joe contracts with her to undertake a number of
jobs on the Frog & Trumpet Hotel before a grand re-opening in
August 2013. Joe and Barbara have agreed that she will decorate
three of the downstairs rooms (the dining room, sitting room and
reception area) for a fixed price per room.

She also has to repair a wardrobe door which will not shut properly,
and repair and paint all of the garden furniture. Joe has said that this
work must be done by 14 August in time for the grand re-Opening.

Barbara completes the work on the reception area and dining room
but forgets to do any work on the sitting room. She arrives at the
Hotel on 12 August to fix the wardrobe but Joes wife Fiona will not
let her into the room as she is getting it ready for the arrival of a
celebrity chef.

She has repaired and painted all of the garden furniture with the
exception of one chair, which needs an extra couple of nails in it to fix
it securely.

Advise Barbara on her right to payment for the work done at


the Frog & Trumpet Hotel.

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Tutorial 4: Employment Law and the Law of Tort

1 Erica and John have both worked for several years as postroom
operatives for Freddies Couriers Ltd at their Nottingham depot.

a) Erica has come under increasing pressure at home because her


husband has left her. She has to look after her young son and her
aged mother. Her line manager, George, has noticed that she has
been getting slower at her job and, after warning her on several
occasions, he dismisses her when she spills coffee over an important
document.

Consider Freddies Couriers liability for unfair dismissal, if


any.

b) As a result of the economic slowdown, Freddies Couriers is


delivering fewer parcels and needs fewer operatives to sort the mail.
Freddies offers George an alternative part-time position at their
sorting office in Scunthorpe, 100 miles away. George refuses to
accept this offer as he thinks it is too far away from his family and he
doesnt want to work part-time.

Advise Freddies Couriers about what possible claim George


could make and whether his claim would be likely to succeed.
(taken from examination 2012/13)

2 Jack buys a second-hand electric lawnmower from his neighbour,


Charlotte. Charlotte had bought the lawnmower from SupaStores
about a year previously. SupaStores had bought the mower from
the manufacturer, Supamowers Ltd.

When Jack is using the lawnmower, it catches fire, causing severe


burns to Jacks hands and clothes. The fire also destroys the
lawnmower itself as well as Jacks garden shed.

Advise Jack of any claim he may have against SupaStores or


SupaMowers Ltd under:

a Common law;

b Statutory law.

(taken from examination 2008/9)

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3 Basil is employed by Towers plc as a delivery van driver. He is not
allowed to have any passengers in his vehicle except for employees
of the company.

One day, Sybil, a salesperson employed by Towers plc, asks Basil whether
he can give her a ride to the premises of a customer located on Basils
delivery route. Basil agrees, but when they are in the vehicle he tells Sybil
that he has to first call at his house to collect a suit to be taken to the dry
cleaners.

As he is running late, Basil drives at high speed on the way to his house,
and loses control of his vehicle when he encounters a patch of oil that has
been spilt on the road. The van hits a wall, injuring Sybil and damaging
beyond repair a notebook computer she was carrying in her bag.

Advise Sybil on whether she has a course of action against Basil,


and Towers plc.
(taken from UNMC resit examination 2008/9)

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