OCR A2 Law - The Law of Contract - Terms of a Contract (2)

2. Importance: The more important the statement the more likely it is to be a term.

CASE: "Couchman v Hill". In this case there was a written agreement for the sale of a heifer (unserved) and the buyer asked the seller to confirm the heifer was infact unserved and he assured him that it was. The heifer however was having a calf and died as a result of it.

HELD: It was a term as the representation that the heifer was unserved was very important ... term.

3. Specialist Knowledge: If a statement was made by a specialist then it it is more likely to be a term.

CASE: "**** Bentley v Smith". This case concerned a well-vetted Bentley car which the dealer said had done 20,000 miles. It had only done 10,000 and ... claimant sued for breach of contract.

HELD: Term as the claimant relied on the seller's specialist knowledge ... breach of contract.

BUT... CONTRASTING CASE ---> CASE: "Oscar Chess v Williams". In this case there was a sale of a car which had a statment regarding the year of the model that were written on the reg documents.

HELD: Innocent misrep as defendants had no expertise knowledge in the area and they relied on what was written on the reg documents.