LA0545 - Contract Law [CPE FT, CPE DL]

McKendrick Text, cases and materials Oxford


Treitel The Law of Contract Sweet and
Maxwell


Smith The Law of Contract Sweet and
Maxwell

McKendrick Contract Law Palgrave Macmillan

Taylor and Taylor Contract Law Oxford University

Poole Textbook on Contract Oxford University

Upex Davies on Contract Sweet and
Maxwell

Poole Casebook on Contract Oxford University

Beale, Bishop and Cases and Materials on the Oxford University
Furmston Law of Contract


Holland and Webb Learning Legal Rules Oxford University

1. An overview of the law of contract, its place in the common law and the operation of the doctrine of judicial precedent. The factors affecting modern contract law.

2. Formation of contract: agreement, certainty, intention to create legal relations and consideration.

3. Formalities of contract.

4. Contents of contract: express and implied terms; interpretation of contracts; exclusion and limitation clauses; the impact of the law emanating from the European Union; the drafting of contracts.

5. Vitiating factors: mistake, misrepresentation, duress, undue influence and inequality of bargaining power.

6. Illegality: contracts void by statute, contracts illegal by statute or at common law, contracts void at common law on the grounds of public policy.

7. The doctrine of privity of contract and exceptions to the doctrine.

8. Discharge of contract: Performance; Breach of Contract; Agreement; and Frustration.

9. Remedies for breach of contract. Outline of Restitution.

To provide students with an insight and understanding of the characteristics of contract, in particular to formation, performance, deficiencies and remedies.

To provide a programme whereby students will utilise a range of sources of law, notably case law, statute and EC legislation.

To facilitate students in using legal knowledge and source materials to appraise and resolve problems at both practical and academic levels.

Students should be able to:

- examine and analyse relevant statutory and common law provisions;

- evaluate critically the legal principles underpinning the law of contract;

- analyse and apply legal rules in proposing practical solutions to contractual problems;

- assess the impact of EC law on the domestic law of contract;

- undertake critical appraisal of developments in the law of contract.

First Degree

N/A

GDL is delivered full-time in one year and distance learning over two years.
The distance learning students have study days throughout the two years and are provided way is a workbook and answer book on contract law on the ELP learning site. Students are told the recommended text and other suitable texts. Students are provided with the study schedule to help them gauge how to work methodically through their studies. Students send in seminar answers as required by the study schedule and feedback can be on the hardcopy returned, by e-mail, in person or over the telephone as required by the circumstances.

For the full-time students the students attend year long lectures and year long seminars. They also have access to the ELP learning site on which there are comprehensive documents for contract law which is modified each year as required to meet the focus of the teaching in that particular year. Students also have access to the electronic versions of the contract law workbook and answer book.

For the distance learning students the students attend study days throughout the two years [ contract law takes place in year one], students have the ELP learning site on which there is a comprehensive provision of contract law documents, they have the electronic workbook and study schedule and the recommended textbook.

Summative assessment and rationale for tasks

the students have coursework to hand in in January of their academic year of study and this 2000 word work comprises 30% of the final Mark. The rationale for this is to encourage the students to do legal research and learn about a common law subject in depth.
The students then do a two-hour examination in summer which requires them to answer three questions from a choice of six. The rationale here is that students ability to work under pressure is tested along with their ability to apply legal knowledge to problems and to essay questions. They only do three questions the course of the fact that they have done the coursework element.


b. Additional formative assessment – detail of process and rationale

The students undertake a timed test before Christmas. They do this in all the core subjects and contract law is the first one. It allows the students and staff to assess where the students are and to identify any shortcomings at an early stage.

c. Indication of how students will get feedback and how this will support their learning

For the timed test students get a comprehensive feedback sheet and any particular problems can be raised in seminars or students can come and see the tutor personally on a one-to-one basis.

For the coursework element, students get comments on an assessment sheet on their individual piece of work and they also get a comprehensive several page feedback on what they could have potentially put in the answer. Students with issues come to see the tutor on a one-to-one basis.