Postal Acceptance Rule Essay

Issues of this case: Could the offer acceptance by e-mail be capable of creating contractual relationships? Was there a breach of contract? The matter of the case is regulated by Contract Law.

A contract comes into existence with the initiation of an offer made by one party, which in turn should be ‘accepted’ by the other party. The element of offer and acceptance thus initiate the legal process of the formation of a valid and binding contract. The significance of acceptance with respect to the contract laws stems from the fact that the proposed offer must be accepted by the promisee and forthwith be communicated to the promisor. Together offer and acceptance create a promise which can

Accordingly, the Legal Department sets out below a general background and practice of Postal Acceptance Rule (PAR) and its application to the business world at present in Australia. We enclose with the modification of PAR in response to ongoing changes in transaction acts and technology nowadays. Regarding Conditional Acceptance, the case of Master v Cameron will be utilized as an example and set as background for recommendations for our business.

Although Amy did not accept the offer from Dr Hu to purchase her medical equipment in the prescribed form of post, her acceptance is still valid. It was suggested that ‘where the offeror has prescribed a particular method of acceptance, but not in terms insisting that only acceptance in that mode shall be binding, that acceptance communicated to the offeror by any other mode which is no less advantageous to him will conclude the contract’ . Therefore suggesting that even though Amy did not respond via post as was asked by Dr Hu, the wording in Dr Hu’s email said that ‘you can respond’, can meaning that it was not specified as the only means of accepting the offer, and that other means of acceptance would be seen to form a binding agreement between the two parties. As Amy’s email was in no way less advantageous to Dr Hu it can be seen as a valid acceptance of the offer that was put to Amy. Amy sent her email of acceptance to the email that she received the email from, which conforms with Section 13A(a) of the Electronic Transactions Act 2000 (NSW) which states ‘the time of receipt of the electronic communication is the time when the electronic communication becomes capable of being retrieved by the addressee at an electronic address designated by the addressee’

Every contract is based on the concept of agreement. A contract is defined as a legal agreement consisting of exchange of promises which is recognized by law as giving rise to enforceable rights and obligations. The test of agreement is used to ensure whether or not there is a contract between the parties. Whereas the objective test ensures certainty, the same cannot be said about the subjective test of agreement. The objective test of agreement is when the court decides whether there is contract based on the outward appearance of what constitutes the contract. However the subjective test of agreement involves trying to establish whether there was a “meeting of minds” when the contract was made. That is, to try to figure out the mental state of mind of the parties involved during the time the contract was made.

One characteristic of the mail box rule is indicating what form(s) of acceptance will be accepted. For example, a telephone call will be used as a form of acceptance.

As electronic mail and new technologies start to become more popular, the demand for the services of the United States Postal Service decreases. People tend to favor the convenience of instant messaging rather than spending the time to physically write out a measly letter. Because of this drastic change, the flow of total mail volume and USPS workers has gone down over the past decade. This loss has affected the USPS and in turn affects the service consumers receive from them. However, in order to make up for the loss of revenue in these desperate times, the USPS should begin to consider restructuring its company.

There are various kinds of contracts which arise within the business world today; contracts are an essential component to a business’s livelihood. Although a contract is an agreement, not all agreements are valid contractual obligations. In order for any contract to be an official and legally binding agreement, there are essential requirements which must first be fulfilled. Because contracts are vital to the organization and its success, it is important that the organization has an inclusive understanding of the inner workings of business

Mail has been around since the beginning of the United States and was once the number one way to communicate with others far away. Now in modern days, the United States Postal Service(USPS) is outdated and considered inferior to other communication tools like email or text messaging. The people of today fancy the fast and artless rout of communication, but the “old fashioned, hand written letter” can be resurrected if vital changes are made to the United States Postal Service (source F). The USPS should modernize itself to catch up with today’s world and remain as a source of jobs and services to the people of the United States.

that the postal service has faced for the past twenty years and if it is in the

The Postal Acceptance Rule or Mailbox Rule is a common law term for contracts that determines the formation of a contract in which the involved parties are communicating through the mail. The primary thrust or core of the mailbox rule is that the acceptance of an offer is sent before the revocation of the specific offer is received. In a scenario where the communication is sent rejecting the offer while a later communication is also sent in acceptance of the contract, then the first communication to be received by the offeror will succeed ("Mailbox Rule", n.d.). Since this rule originated several years or decades ago, many people say that it should no longer be applied today because the reliability of the postal system is declining and the increased use of electronic means to send letters.

The purpose of this essay is to provide an explanation of the postal rule while dealing with acceptance of an offer, as well as evaluating how effective the postal rule is today. The main body of this essay will look at what the postal rule while dealing with acceptance of an offer is, as well as the circumstances surrounding the creation of the postal rule. There will also be an evaluation of the effectiveness of the postal rule today. This will be summarised with a conclusion.

Contracts are used in many different forms and for just as many different situations within our everyday lives. Some contracts are more involved than others and for some; contracts are an essential of their success. As we continue, we will take a look at different types of contracts with the main focus on enforceable contracts. With so many elements that are incorporated into any contract, the six essential elements of enforceable contracts will be the main focus of this writing. Having a clearer understanding of the essentials of life will help prepare us for life’s curves that may come our way.

In contract law, the offeror can establish the method of acceptance and the acceptance must comply with the requirements in the offer before an agreement is completed. The facts provided indicate, Michael as offeror, failed to prescribe any method of acceptance. There is an assumption that if no method of acceptance is prescribed, acceptance is to take the same form as the offer[7]. Given Boris replied by the method of offer, being post, it can be concluded that Boris complied with the method of acceptance by posting the letter of acceptance.

The postal rule was developed to facilitate contracting at a distance. Initially, bargaining at a distance often posed a great challenge to bargaining parties especially through the postal services. This was mainly because via the mail parties could not know simultaneously whether they had reached an agreement. As a result a general rule indicating the time of an acceptance had to be established. Consequently the postal acceptance rule was developed .The postal rule function to create an exception to the general rule, which stipulates that an acceptance will only be effective upon receipt