Exam 9: Representations and Terms

Negligent misrepresentation occurs when a person deliberately lies about a material fact inducing a contract.

Which of the following statements is TRUE with respect to misrepresentations?

Contracts of utmost good faith

In what sense might a standard form agreement be beneficial to consumers? Briefly explain the downside of standard forms.

Someone who signs a document in a hurry is never bound by his signature.

A misstatement of the law is identical to a misstatement about the existing factual consequences of the application of that law.

When will silence distort a previous assertion?

A ticket contract is

What is the rationale for holding people to their signatures even when they have not read or understood the contract?

In order to get Susannah to buy his cottage, Paul tells her that he has recently spent $100 000 in repairs that make its foundations flawless.In love with the cottage and in reliance on Paul's representation, Susannah impulsively trades her condo in the city for the cottage without asking for a home inspection.Two months after she moves into the cottage, Susannah hears a creaking noise during a windy evening.The next morning, she has a home inspector over to take a look.He tells her that there have been no repairs on the house in the last 20 years and that the foundation is in a dangerous state of disrepair.She calls Paul to try to get her condo back but finds out that he has sold the unit and has moved to Bermuda with all of his assets.In seeking orders for rescission and restitution,

Ranjit purchased a complex computer system from Compu-Less.Although Compu-Less had specially manufactured the computer to Ranjit's personal specifications, the sale was created on the basis of a standard form agreement that the company uses when customers buy mass-produced computer units.A dispute has now arisen between Ranjit and Compu-Less.Which of the following statements is most likely to be TRUE?

In order for a standard form contract to be enforceable, the party that signed it must have received independent legal advice

Personal opinions are not usually treated as misrepresentations.Very briefly explain why they are not and describe a situation where it is risky to offer a personal opinion.

Which of the following is NOT an example of a disclosure required by statute?

A purchaser bought an oil painting from a private collector who promised that it was painted by one of the members of the Group of Seven, a promise that was held to be one of the terms of the contract.The painting quickly became the purchasers favourite.He took it home and built a special room for its viewing, with an expensive lighting system.Five years later, after having grown somewhat tired of the room, the purchaser decided to sell the painting.In so doing, he discovered much to his chagrin that the painting was worth much less than he had thought as it was, in fact, done by a less famous American painter, who worked in a style similar to the Group of Seven.The purchaser decided to try to get his money back.He sued the private collector who sold it to him, asking the court to rescind the contract on the ground that there had been an innocent misrepresentation.What are the most plausible grounds upon which the court might decide not to rescind?