Contract Assignment 2010 – 1st BA, 1st

B.Corp, 1st BCL

This assignment, which counts for 20% of your marks for this course, must be
submitted to the Law School by 5pm on Friday, 14 th January, 2011. It must be
typed in 12 point font with 1.5 spacing and should be no more than 1,000
words. The cover page must give the lecturer’s name, your name, ID number
and class. Information on how to answer problem questions and a sample
answer are available on Blackboard under ‘Documents’.

Galway Properties Ltd placed an advertisement in the Galway Advertiser for

the lease of a unit in the new Galway Mega-Shopping Centre. A Cork
company, Inflatable Furniture Ltd, began negotiating for the lease. On receipt
of full particulars and a draft lease, IFL sent a fax on the 1st of September to
GPL indicating their willingness to lease the unit and asking whether there
would be any other inflatable furniture shops in the centre, as they did not
think that Galway could support two such shops. On the 2nd of September
GPL sent the following fax to IFL: “No other inflatable furniture shops in the
centre at present, but several such firms interested in the unit.” IFL signed and
posted the draft lease on the 4th of September. On the same day they sent a
fax: “Terms accepted, signed lease in post.” This fax arrived at the office of
GPL a few minutes later, but was buried under a pile of letters and never
read. By the time the letter arrived on the 6 th of September, GPL had agreed
(the previous evening) to lease the unit to someone else.

Advise IFL on their legal position.