Task 4 135Cedric then received a bigger order from Acme (Superjewellers) Ltd and posted jewellery
worth £10,000 to Acme (Superjewellers) Ltd. Cedric did not receive payment for this and has
since been informed that Acme (Superjewellers) Ltd is a fictitious company, often used as an
alias by Edward, a rogue. Edward has been caught by the police and is likely to be sent to
prison. The police have discovered that Frederick now has the jewellery which Cedric sent to
Acme (Superjewellers) Ltd. Frederick bought the jewellery from Edward. Advise Cedric of his
legal position.3 Gina, a dealer in antiques, visits the premises of Helen, another dealer. Gina buys a paint-
ing for £5,000. Helen does not make any claims about the painting. The painting turns out
to be a fake and virtually worthless. Advise Gina of her legal position in the following
circumstances.
(a) Helen, like Gina, believed that the painting was genuine and worth about £5,000.
(b) Helen had a good idea that the painting was a fake.
4 George is a retired teacher. Fay has agreed to buy George’s boat, so that she can sail to the
Channel Islands. How would the contract be affected if, unknown to both parties:
(a) The boat did not belong to George?
(b) The boat was completely unseaworthy?
(c) The boat had been destroyed by fire five minutes before the contract was made?
5 Sarah buys a painting from a junk shop for £100. What would the effect on the contract
be if:
(a) Sarah discovered that the painting was utterly worthless?
(b) The shop owner had untruthfully said that the painting was by the minor Edwardian artist,
René Dulux, and therefore worth at least £100? (In fact the painting is worthless.)
6 Jermaine, a carpenter, put in a tender to do the carpentry work on a development which was
being built in North Wales. Jermaine’s tender was accepted. The work was to be completed
in two months and Jermaine was to be paid £5,000. When Jermaine arrived on the site, he
was told that there had been a mistake and another carpenter had been employed instead.
Jermaine was told that he could still do the work but that he would only be paid £3,500.
Jermaine felt that he had to accept these new terms as he had no other work available and
had given up his flat so that he could move to Wales. Jermaine has now finished the job on
time. Advise Jermaine of his legal position.
7 Explain any remedies which are available to a person who sells goods to a rogue who buys
the goods with a bad cheque whilst using a false identity.
Task 4
A friend of yours who is visiting the country from abroad is considering starting a business in
England. Your friend has asked you to write a report, briefly dealing with the following matters:
(a) The difference between a contract term and a representation.
(b) The nature of a misrepresentation.