Courturier v Hastie
Encyclopedia
Courturier v Hastie [1856] UKHL J3 is an English contract law
case, concerning common mistake between two contracting parties about the possibility of performance of an agreement.
English contract law
English contract law is a body of law regulating contracts in England and Wales. With its roots in the lex mercatoria and the activism of the judiciary during the industrial revolution, it shares a heritage with countries across the Commonwealth , and the United States...
case, concerning common mistake between two contracting parties about the possibility of performance of an agreement.
Facts
Courturier agreed with Hastie to deliver some corn. They thought it was in transit between Salonica (now Thessaloniki) and the UK. But the corn had already decayed. The shipmaster had sold it. Courturier argued that Hastie was liable for the corn because Hastie had already bought an ‘interest in the adventure’, or rights under the shipping documents.Judgment
The House of Lords held that because the corn effectively did not exist at the time of the contract, there was a total failure of consideration and the buyers were not liable to pay the price.See also
- English contract lawEnglish contract lawEnglish contract law is a body of law regulating contracts in England and Wales. With its roots in the lex mercatoria and the activism of the judiciary during the industrial revolution, it shares a heritage with countries across the Commonwealth , and the United States...
- Frustration in English lawFrustration in English lawFrustration in English law is an English contract law doctrine, which acts as a device to set aside contracts where an unforeseen event either renders contractual obligations impossible, or radically changes the party's principal purpose for entering into the contract...
- Sale of Goods Act 1979Sale of Goods Act 1979The Sale of Goods Act 1979 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which regulates English contract law and UK commercial law in respect of goods that are sold and bought. The Act consolidates the original Sale of Goods Act 1893 and subsequent legislation, which in turn had codified and...
s 6 - McRae v Commonwealth Disposals CommissionMcRae v Commonwealth Disposals CommissionMcRae v Commonwealth Disposals Commission [1951] is an Australian contract law case, relevant for English contract law, concerning the common mistake about the possibility of performing an agreement.-Facts:...
(1951) 84 CLR 377