Principles of Law 101

ANSWERING PROBLEM QUESTIONS IN K+ LAW EXAMS When answering problem questions in exams it is important to realise that you are taking the role of judge. You have to present the relevant legal arguments for tackling the problem question and then decide which argument(s) is likely to succeed in law. For example, you will be given a problem fact situation involving a dispute between two or more parties and then asked to advise the parties to the dispute of the likelihood of their success in taking legal action. The focus is not so much on the conclusion you reach, but rather it is on how well you argue the relevant law, that is, your ability to use legal reasoning. Approach 1a
There are 5 separate steps involved in answering a problem question They are as follows:STEP 1. List the sequence of key events in the case which will include the material facts

STEP 2.

State the issue(s).

STEP 3.

State the law and the source of that law.

STEP 4.

Relate the law to the fact situation.

STEP 5.

Come to a conclusion and note any consequences that follow.

A more detailed explanation of the above steps is given below. Also, the following sample question is used to illustrate these steps.

SAMPLE EXAM PROBLEM 1

Principles of Law 101 Lisa wants to sell her computer and knows that her friend, Nicole is interested in buying it. On November 1, Lisa writes and posts a letter to Nicole (who is currently on holidays interstate) which she concludes as follows:By the way, I am selling my computer and buying a new one. I think it is worth UGX. 700,000; without the printer which I want to keep. If you are not interested in buying it for UGX. 700,000, let me know by November 10, as I am going to sell it at an auction on that day if you do not want to buy it. Nicole receives Lisas letter on November 3. On November 5 she posts a letter to Lisa which includes the following statement:I would buy your computer for UGX. 700,000, but would you include the printer in the price, as I have only UGX. 700,000 left after my holiday expenses? Lisa receives Nicoles letter on November 6, and posts a second letter to Nicole on November 7, in which she says:My offer to sell you my computer for UGX. 700,000 is withdrawn. I will sell it at auction on November 10. In the meantime, Nicole has second thoughts about the computer and realises that it is a bargain at UGX. 700,000. She accordingly writes and posts a second letter to Lisa on November 7, saying:Ignore my earlier letter, I will buy the computer for UGX. 700,000 without the printer. I will contact you when I return to make arrangements to pick it up and pay you. Lisa receives this letter on November 10, but only after she has sold the computer at an auction for $1,200. Nicole receives Lisas letter of November 7 on November 10. Advise Nicole as to her contractual rights in this situation (10 marks)

STEP1

State the key facts of the case in a chronological order of occurrence

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STEP 2 State the issue. (ie. Which area of Law does this question deal with? ) This is perhaps the most difficult part of any question. The issue or issues the question deals with are often disguised or difficult to pick. A student who does not know or understand the course very well can easily misread, misunderstand or jump to the wrong conclusion in relation to the area of law covered by the question. Your notes, may not assist in this regard. Too often students have indicated to me after an exam that the question looked like the issue on which they delivered their answer and in fact the question demanded an answer on another issue altogether. There is no formula for working out the correct issue(s) for a question. I can only advise that the better you know the course and the more effort you put in during the semester and the more practice you do from past exam papers, the better you will become at picking the issues as the questions often re-appear in later years with just the names of the parties changed but the legal issue is the same. In your examinations each problem question will usually have more than one issue. You should deal with each issue in the problem separately, following each of the steps in the format outlined above, in the order given.

How to write the answer in the exam using this method As a matter of style, you could use complete sentences. However, using a combination of figures and words will not lose you any marks Example:Your exam answer could look like this:-

Issue 1. - Offer and Acceptance Whether you make an overall issue as a heading then deal with each issue separately will depend on the question Example:Overall Issue - Offer and Acceptance 1st Issue - Offer ..................................(when you have dealt with the 1st Issue) 2nd Issue - Revocation of Offer ....................(when you have dealt with that issue)

Principles of Law 101 3rd Issue - Postal Rule etc.

STEP 3.

State the law and the source of that law

This is where a well prepared set of notes is invaluable. Once you have identified the correct issue and noted it on your exam paper, as outlined above, then the next step is to: Firstly - copy out each relevant proposition(s) of law required to answer the question and then in brackets note the authority (source) of that rule After each rule or proposition of law you will have to put in brackets the authority for that rule, ie. the case in which the rule was first made. Note that your understanding of the issues in the question will determine the quality of your answer. Example: Suppose that your answer requires you to state the law relating to Revocation of Offer At this point, your answer, would read 2. The Law To be effective, notice of revocation must actually reach the offeree prior to his acceptance of the offer (Byrne v. Van Tienhoven) Note: at this stage (if you are following this method of answering problems) you do no more than state the law and the source. Discussing how the law relates to the problem is the next step in the answer. If there are several points of law relating to the issue you are dealing with you, should note them (and their source) one after another at this time.

Example: Take Q1 which is provided above. Your exam answer at this point could look like this: Q1. Issue 1 General Issue - Offer and Acceptance Offer or Invitation to Treat 4

Principles of Law 101 2. The Law An offer is a clear unambiguous promise to do something in exchange for something from the other party. An offer must be distinguished from an Invitation to Treat which only invites an offer (Harvey v Facey). Issue 2 (or The second issue in the question) 1. Issue - Counter Offer 2. The Law - A counter offer revokes the first offer and substitutes a new offer (Hyde v Wrench). Issue 3. 1. 2. Issue - Revocation of Offer The law - Revocation of offer must be communicated to finish the first offer.

And so your answer continues until you have worked through all the issues in the question. (You may feel that this process takes a lot of exam time. However, missing a vital point in your exam answer could seriously affect your final exam mark.)

STEP 4.

Relate the law to the fact situation.

This is the most important part of your answer and where most marks are gained. You have stated the issue(s) involved and the law(s) which are relevant to that issue. Now you must show how the fact situation relates to the that law. This is achieved by looking at each situation in the given problem and comparing every element in the rule of law and deciding if that element has been proven or has not been made out by the facts given. Example: Look at Issue 1. in Question 1

The Issue is whether the first statement made by Lisa is an Offer or an Invitation to Treat. Two propositions of law were quoted.

Principles of Law 101 The first rule indicated - that to be an offer, the person making the statement (Lisa) must demonstrate that she has made a clear and unambiguous promise to do something in exchange for something from the other party You will need to formulate the habit of looking carefully at each element of the law quoted and see if that element has been made out. In the stated rule the first element is that, to be an offer, the statement must indicate a clear and unambiguous promise. If you look at the wording Lisa uses you should have some doubts that she is making a clear and unambiguous promise. She uses words such as - By the way; I think it is worth .....; :If you are interested ....... You would be justified in questioning whether Lisa was actually offering to sell the computer to Nicole or just testing the waters. However, later Lisa actually states that if Nicole does not answer in the affirmative by a specified date, she will sell at auction. That is clear and definite. Therefore, on balance, you would also be justified in concluding that the statement by Lisa is an offer. (Do not be surprised if you can see both sides of an issue. The examiner intends it that way. Your task is, given the facts, which result is more probable or reasonable.) This process of looking at the elements of the rule of law and deciding whether each element is made out (as a judge presiding over a case would do) and then noting your thoughts and conclusions to that test in your answer is probably the most vital part of your answer. You will need to repeat this process with every part of each proposition of law and with each issue you have raised in problem you are tackling.

STEP 5.

Come to a conclusion and note any consequences that follow.

This last step is important but not crucial if you come to an answer with which the examiner differs. The bulk of the marks will have been obtained for selecting the correct issue, stating the appropriate law and relating the facts to that law. You will probably have been asked to advise X if there is a contract or if s/he has a remedy etc. Try to relate you conclusion to the exact question you have been asked.

From what perspective should I answer each problem question?

Principles of Law 101 Irrespective of who you are asked to advise you should answer every question as if you were a judge in court giving your result of the case you have just heard and the reasons for your decision. Example: In the question looked at earlier (see last page), you were asked to advise Nicole as to her contractual rights. You are really being asked if Nicole had a contract, and if so, could she force Lisa to supply the computer or obtain another remedy (eg. Damages) from the court if Lisa has breached the contract by selling the computer at auction. As there are usually multiple issues involved all the way through the problem, the outcome to each issue leading to a contract existing or being breached, the final result will depend how you argued each issue. Your conclusion could read as follows:4. Conclusion

As I have shown, Lisas first letter was an offer and Nicoles reply, being merely a request for more information, did not destroy the offer. However, Lisas purported attempt to revoke her offer arrived after Lisa had posted her acceptance of the offer, which, according to the postal rule was effective on posting. Hence Nicole has a contract with Lisa for the sale of the computer which Lisa has breached by its sale. As Lisa will not be able to produce the goods to complete her part of the contract, Nicole will have a remedy in damages for breach of contract. (Look out for situations, later in the course, where there is a contractual result but where there may also be a remedy in Statute Law.)

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Approach 1b It is important to apply the following format when answering a problem question:

decide what the issues are (that is, the matters over which there is or may be some dispute); decide what rules of law are applicable to those issues; cite the authority for the rule (that is, a case or statute); apply the rule to the facts; come to a conclusion; state the remedy.

A sample exam question: On 15 September, Arthur offers to sell his antique desk to Harry for $5,000. Harry subsequently inspects the desk and says to Arthur The desk is in excellent condition and Id like to have it. Theres no doubt that I could afford to buy this desk if I could pay for it in three instalments. Nothing further is said concerning the desk. On 18 September, Harry sends a letter to Arthur in which he accepts Arthurs original offer. On 19 September, Harry learns that Arthur has sold the desk to Richard for $6,000. On 20 September, Arthur receives Harrys letter of acceptance. Advise Harry whether he has an action against Arthur for breach of contract. Give detailed reasons for your answer. To get a clear picture of related events, it is useful to draw a diagram:

Principles of Law 101

Next step:

isolate areas of dispute which may occur these are the issues an issue is a fact of a situation that could have more than one legal interpretation. That is, more than one law could apply to it. The statement: Id like to have it (one fact) could be interpreted in more than one way legally. It could be: o an acceptance of the offer o a request for more information o a counter offer A questioning attitude is important

The issues are indicated by shaded circles in the following diagram:

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The plan the answer:

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The Answer An offer has clearly been made by Arthur to sell his antique desk to Harry for $5000. The first question is whether Harrys reply was a counter offer or a request for further information. If it was a counter offer then, as was held in Hyde v Wrench, it amounted to a rejection of Arthurs offer. Arthurs offer would therefore have terminated, and hence could not be accepted, and there would have been no contract. If it was a request for further information, as in Stevenson, Jacques v McLean, the offer was still open and could have been accepted. To be an offer (whether an original offer or a counter offer), a statement must contain a promise or promises and not just a fact or information, as was indicated in Harvey v Facey. So the question becomes did Harry intend his statement to be a promise to buy the desk on condition that he could pay for it in three instalments? If he did, then it was a counter offer and he could not sue for breach of contract. Alternatively, Harry could just have been commenting on his own ability to pay thereby seeking further information from Arthur about what method of payment would be acceptable to him. In my opinion, Harrys statement contained no promises. He did not promise to buy it on condition he could pay by instalments. He merely stated a fact about his financial circumstances and the method of payment he could manage. He was talking around the offer, perhaps seeking a response from Arthur, before deciding how to respond to Arthurs offer. Therefore Harry made no counter offer and Arthurs offer remained open. It is now necessary to determine if and when Harry accepted the offer. If the Postal Rule applied then acceptance occurred on the 18th (that is at the time of posting Nunin Holdings Pty Ltd v Tullamarine Estates Pty Ltd). There is probably not sufficient evidence to decide the issue absolutely. It is not disclosed how Arthurs offer was made. Whether the Postal Rule applies depends on whether the offeror has contemplated and expressly or impliedly approved the post as a mode of acceptance. If the offer was made verbally, then probably the Postal Rule did not apply. Therefore acceptance did not occur until the 20th, when Arthur received the letter. If the offer was made by post then acceptance would probably have occurred on the 18th (that is when Harry posted the letter). If the latter applies then Harry has an action for breach of contract. If the former applies then the result depends on whether Arthur revoked his offer prior to the 20th. By selling the desk to Richard, Arthur clearly intended to revoke his offer. However, as decided in Byrne v Van Tienhoven, the revocation must be communicated to the offeree. However the revocation does not have to be
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Principles of Law 101

communicated by the offeror in person. It may be made by any other person provided it is reasonable in the circumstances for the offeree to rely upon that other person. In Dickinson v Dodds the court decided that revocation is effective if it is communicated to the offeree by a reasonably reliable source. It seems clear that this has happened in this case, and hence, Harry cannot accept Arthurs offer because it no longer exists. In my opinion Harry has little chance of success because either: 1. there was a counter offer, or 2. the Postal Rule does not apply and revocation occurred prior to acceptance.
This next approach to tackling exam questions is a very similar approach to the one outlined above, but it does not go into the detail of each of the steps involved in answering questions. However, it does emphasise the importance of planning your answer and applying a format to answering questions. The format suggested is essentially the same as the one described in Example 1. Also, it is useful to see how a bare pass answer compares with an answer which would gain full marks.

Approach 2
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(The Answer) Approach 2 "Florence is a trained nurse, working and living in New York. She is employed there on most favourable terms because of her specialised knowledge and she also owns her own apartment in Manhattan. She receives a letter from her parents, pleading with her to return to Melbourne as they are both ill, asking her to return and care for them in their old age. They assure her that they will leave to her in their respective wills, their beach house at Portsea in appreciation of her services. She sells her Manhattan property, relinquishes her job and returns to Melbourne to look after them. After their deaths five years later, she discovers that the Portsea house has been left in her parents will to the Lost Dogs Home, their favourite charity. Can she claim the Portsea house from their Estates?" This question is worth 5 marks. This would justify a 15 minute answer. The question could be answered to a bare pass standard in the following way:Florence can sue the estates in contract if she can prove all of the elements of a contract. They are offer, acceptance, intention and consideration. They all appear to exist, the only suspect one being intention. The facts are remarkably similar to the case of Todd v Nichol, where the Court decided that although there was a domestic relationship between the parties, there was intention to create a legal obligation, and therefore, there was a binding contract between the parties. By using that case as a precedent, Florence would succeed if she sued the estates. This answer could be written in 5 minutes, and would attract a mark of 2 or 2.5, but it fails to do justice to the student. A plan for the answer, using a 6 step procedure, would be as follows:

Issue - Intention Law and cases - Intention is component of every legal contract o - Proof of intention? o - Presumptions - commercial Edwards v Skyways o - rebuttal Roe & Frank v Crompton o - domestic Balfour v Balfour o - rebuttal Merritt v Merritt Application - Elements of both social and commercial (Todd v Nichol) Conclusion - She probably wins. Consequences - Can successfully sue the estates for the house.
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A plan of this nature can be prepared in 5 minutes, leaving 10 minutes to write the answer. A planned answer is much quicker to write than an unplanned one, follows a more logical sequence, and covers all the relevant points. Realistically, the answer would have to be limited to about a page, given the time restrictions. An answer which would attract 5 marks would be as follows:The issue raised by this question is whether or not the parties intended to be legally bound by their agreement. The law of contract requires that, in order for a binding contract to exist, there must be such intention, together with offer, acceptance and consideration. The existence of intention is tested by using two established presumptions. First, if the agreement is commercial in nature, there is a presumption that they intended to be legally bound. (Edwards v Skyways Ltd.) This presumption can be rebutted by clear evidence of an opposite intention. (Rose & Frank v Crompton) Conversely, with social or domestic agreements, the presumption is that no intention to be legally bound attaches to the arrangement (Balfour v Balfour). Again, this presumption can be rebutted by clear contrary evidence (Merritt v Merritt). By applying the law to the facts, we see that the agreement has both commercial and domestic elements, so that the presumptions do not really provide us with an answer. However, this dilemma arose in the case of Todd v Nichol, when the court decided in similar facts, that, despite the fact that the parties were related, thus suggesting a domestic or social agreement, the fact that they relinquished property interests and jobs in Scotland was evidence that they intended to be legally bound. The conclusion, therefore, is that, by relying on Todd v Nichol, Florence can prove all the elements of a contract and can sue the estates of her parents to enforce those rights as against the Lost Dogs Home. Such an action would have excellent prospects of success. If the same problem arose as the sole issue in a question worth 10 marks instead of 5, a more detailed answer would be justified. This could be achieved in the planning stage by going into detail about the cases referred to in the answer. Remember that the majority of marks are achieved for a detailed and sensible analysis of the relevant law. Your decision is not critical - it is often a matter of opinion anyway, and you will not lose marks for having an opinion which differs from the examiners. You gain marks for legal knowledge, not for making judgements. Write your answer as if you were speaking politely to someone who is completely ignorant of the law, and you are trying to explain to them the law which is relevant, in order to lead to a logical conclusion.

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