Tweddle v Atkinson [1861] EWHC QB J57, (1861) 1 B&S 393, 121 ER 762 is an English contract law

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 the principle of privity of contract

Privity in English law

Privity is a doctrine in English contract law that covers the relationship between parties to a contract and other parties or agents. At its most basic level, the rule is that a contract can neither give rights to, nor impose obligations on, anyone who is not a party to the original agreement, ie a...

 and consideration

Consideration

Consideration is the central concept in the common law of contracts and is required, in most cases, for a contract to be enforceable. Consideration is the price one pays for another's promise. It can take a number of forms: money, property, a promise, the doing of an act, or even refraining from...

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Facts

The groom’s father, John Tweddle, agreed with the bride’s father, William Guy, to pay the groom, William Tweddle, £200. William Guy died, and the estate would not pay. So William Tweddle sued.

Judgment

The courts ruled that a promisee cannot bring an action unless the consideration from the promise moved from him. Consideration must move from party entitled to sue upon the contract. No legal entitlement is conferred on third parties to an agreement. Third parties to a contract do not derive any rights from that agreement nor are they subject to any burdens imposed by it.