Exam 11: Consideration

Upon graduating from college,Kathy announced her plans to enter law school the following fall and to marry Rick in December.Kathy's father was afraid that marriage during her first year in law school might cause her to fall behind in her studies or cause her to drop out of school.He called Kathy and promised her $10,000 if she postponed her wedding until after completion of her first year of law school.Kathy agreed and postponed the wedding for a year.Kathy successfully completed her first year of law school,but soon thereafter,Kathy's father died.The administrator of her father's estate claimed she was not entitled to the $10,000 because there was no consideration for her father's promise.If Kathy sues the estate,she will probably be:

Courts normally require consideration to be approximately equal on both sides of the bargain.

Douros Realty & Construction Co.had a lead on a "prime" piece of real estate.Although Douros did not have a listing agreement with the seller of the property,he contacted Kelley Properties.Douros knew that Kelley was looking for a location for a commercial development.Douros contacted Kelley stating only that he had the "finest,most outstanding,viable location in the county and it just came on the market." Douros said he would reveal the location of the property and the owner's name if Kelley would sign an agreement which would require Kelley to pay a 10% commission if a sale of the property resulted.The agreement was signed.Four months later,Kelley bought the property after negotiating the deal himself.Kelley claims he does not owe a commission to Douros because there was insufficient consideration to support the payment of commission so large.Kelley claims that all Douros did in the entire transaction was to reveal the location of the property and the owner's name.Was there sufficient consideration to make this promise enforceable?

"I'll sell you my car if I decide to sell it" is an example of:

Mary owes $3,800 on her credit card.She sends the credit card company a check for $800 with the notation "payment in full" on the check.If the credit card issuer cashes the check:

Bernie owes an undisputed amount to Wilde's Heating & Air Conditioning.Which of the following is true?

In January,Alex promised to pay Y-K Inc.$5,000 if it would refrain from filing suit against him on a breach of contract action.Y-K agreed and accepted a $5,000 check from Alex.Which of the following statements is correct?

Billy owes a liquidated debt of $3000 to Rayna,his personal weight trainer.Billy sends Rayna a check for $300 on which he has marked,"Payment in Full." If Rayna cashes the check she will not be able to successfully sue Billy for the remainder of the debt.

Shirley Rhone suffered injuries when a truck struck the vehicle in which she was riding.State Auto Mutual Insurance Co.was the insurer involved and provided personal injury coverage.Shirley went to see Dr.Allen,a chiropractor who provided treatments 32 times over a 3-month period.Dr.Allen billed State Auto in three separate billings.After paying the first two billings in full,State Auto expressed concern about whether Dr.Allen's charges were excessive.State Auto hired Chiropractic Consultants,Inc.to evaluate Dr.Allen's billings.The consultants advised that Dr.Allen's billings were indeed excessive.State Auto then telephoned Dr.Allen and offered a partial payment to settle the account.After this conversation,State Auto issued and sent a check for $864 payable to Dr.Allen.On the face of the check,State Auto noted the total amount allocated to each claim and typed "settlement in full." On the reverse side it said,"The endorsement of this draft by the payee constitutes a clear release and full settlement of the claim or account shown on the other side." Upon receipt of the check,Dr.Allen cashed the check.He then sought payment of an additional $895.State Auto claims there was an accord and satisfaction with respect to the amount due for services rendered by Dr.Allen.What are the requirements of an accord and satisfaction? Were those requirements met in this case?

Raul agrees to paint Mike's house for $1,000.Before finishing,Raul states it is too hot to finish,and Mike offers to pay $1,200 if Raul finishes.Mike's statement that he will pay $1,200 is unenforceable.

Courts enforce all promises in the interests of simple morality.

Discuss the concept of consideration.

The UCC requires consideration for agreements modifying contracts for the sale of goods.

Under the Uniform Commercial Code,an agreement modifying a contract:

Bailey Co.and Spryt Bros.enter into a contract for the manufacture and sale of 400 lawn chairs.If both parties agree that a modification is necessary:

Contracts generally do not require bargaining that leads to an exchange between the parties.

Peter Dementas helped Jack Tallas with numerous personal and business chores towards the end of his life.Two months before his death,Tallas dictated a memorandum to Dementas,in Greek,stating:PETER K.DEMENTAS is my best friend I have in this country,...he treats me like a father and I think of him as my own son....For all the services Peter has given me all these years,I owe to him the amount of $50,000 (Fifty Thousand Dollars).I will shortly change my will to include him as my heir.Tallas signed the memorandum,but he did not in fact alter his will to include Dementas.?This was a real case.The Utah appeals court would rule:

What two exceptions did the UCC create for accord and satisfaction check cases?

Zero,Inc.agreed to build Millie a storage building for $8,000.After beginning the project,Zero realized that it could not complete the job and make a profit.Zero demanded $9,500 to complete the building.Millie agreed to pay the $9,500.When the project was complete,Millie tendered $8,000 to Zero for the job.If Zero sues Millie for the remaining $1,500:

Contracts in which one party agrees to buy all his requirements of certain goods from the other party are generally unenforceable because there is no definite amount.