Kariuki entered sunset supermarket, picked up one of the wire baskets provided and filled it with groceries from the shelves. As he was approaching the cashier he realized that his purse had been stolen and decided to replace the good on the shelve. The manager of the supermarket who had been observing Kariuki‟s movements instructed one of his assistants to approach Kariuki and tell him that the goods had been sold and he could not replace them on the shelves.
Advise Kariuki.
ANSWER
• This problem is based on revocation of offers.
• In this case Kariuki made an offer conduct picking the goods from the shelves. However, since the offer had not been accepted the time he realized that his wallet had been stolen, he was at liberty to revoke the offer in the manner he purportedly did.
• The shop assistant has no business questioning his conduct as his offer had not been accepted.
• My advise to Kariuki is that there is no cause for alarm as he is under no legal obligation to purchase the goods in question.
• Having revoked the offer he is free from liability
• My advise is based on the decision in Dickinson V. Dodds which is authoritative for the proposition that an offer is revocable at any time before it is effectively accepted.
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Mr. A, a car dealer sells second hand cars. On Thursday last week, he placed an advertisement in a daily newspaper which stated the following: “Once in a lifetime, opportunity to own a one year old Nissan Caravan, low mileage, Kshs.500,000 cash. The offer is valid for only one day and the car will go to the first person who accepts it.” When Mr. B saw the advertisement, he immediately posted a letter of acceptance of Mr. A‟s offer. Mrs. C also saw the advertisement and came to inspect the car after which Mrs. C offered Mr. A a cheque of Kshs. 500,000. However, Mr. A refused to accept the cheque stating that another potential buyer had already offered to buy the car. Later in the day Ms D, another interested buyer telephoned Mr. A informing him that she was willing to buy the car but asked Mr. A if he would keep the offer open until she could go to her bank to obtain a loan. Mr. A accepted the request. However later, in the day, Mr. E, another potential buyer said that he would pay Sh. 600,000 in cash for the car. Mr. A agreed to sell the car to Mr. E. On Monday morning, Mr. A received Mr. B‟s letter of acceptance. At the same time, Mr. E returned to complete the transaction. However, in the afternoon Mr. E telephoned Mr. A to say that he had second thoughts and he no longer wished to purchase the car. Citing relevant decided cases where applicable, explain the legal principles in the case in relation to: (a) Mr. A (4 marks) (b) Mr. B (4 marks) (c) Mrs. C (4 marks) (d) Ms. D (4 marks) (e) Mr. E (4 marks)