Justin, a dealer in rare records, acquires a valuable record by the Rolling Stones. He decides to give three of his regular customers, Dan, Frankie, and Ed, the chance to buy the record and writes to each of them telling them of this ‘once in a lifetime chance’. He states in his letter that he is prepared to sell the record for around £100 and asks them to telephone him by 4pm on 25 May if they are interested. The three respond in the following ways.
(i) Dan telephones Justin on 24 May indicating that he wants to buy the record for £80.
(ii) Frankie replies by email early on 25 May, saying ‘I agree to pay £100, as long as you provide a letter confirming the record’s provenance.’
(iii) Ed posts a letter on 24 May indicating that he wants to buy the record for £90 or £20 more than anyone else has offered. The letter is delayed in the post, even though it is correctly addressed, and does not arrive until 26 May.
By the time Justin receives Ed’s letter, he has already sent the record to Frankie with a covering letter saying that he cannot provide a letter of provenance. Justin now wants to recover the book from Frankie and sell the book to Ed for £120.
Advise on Justin’s legal position
2007-12-04
03:16:19
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14 answers
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asked by
Anonymous
in
Law & Ethics