LEGAL PRINCIPLE: Time is the essence of a contract.

FACTUAL SITUATION: Ghantewala is the oldest and most reputed sweet-shop in Delhi. It requires large quantities of sugar for making sweets. Ghantewala plans to sell some new, unique and delicious items of sweets on the eve of New Year, 2010. Therefore it places an order to M/s. ABC Sugar Company, Meerut, for supply of 1,000 tonnes of top-quality-sugar. But, it does not receive the sugar till 1st of January, 2010. The consignment of sugar does reach the sweet-shop, but on 5th of January, 2010. Due to delay in supply of sugar Ghantewalla incurs heavy losses in business.

DECISION:

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: Whoever attempts to commit suicide and does anything towards killing himself is said to have committed an offence.

FACTUAL SITUATION: Ramesh was dejected in his life. He had neither any interest to live nor any interest to live nor any goals to achieve. He was not getting proper sleep. In order to get good sleep, he to take sleeping tablets. One day he has consumed, lot of sleeping tablets. He knew that consuming such heavy quantity of sleeping tablets could be fatal. His family members realised the situation and admitted him to the hospital where he was treated in the emergency ward. Now he is alright.

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: If a person without any authority prevents a person to proceed in any direction and is kept confined, he commits an offence of criminal confinement.

FACTUAL SITUATION: The Municipality allowed a special permit to hold a marriage party blocking a part of a public road. The marriage party blocked most of the roads and did not allow X, a passer-by, to cross the road. He brings a charge of criminal confinement against the head of the marriage party and other associates. Can X succeed.

DECISION:

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: An agreement to do, act impossible in itself is void.

FACTUAL SITUATION: A promises B to discover a treasure trove by magic, if B pays him? 500. B being aware of the fact that A is a magician agrees to the same and pays him 500. But to B’s dismay no treasure trove was discovered. B files a suit for breach of contract and to recover 500.

DECISION:

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: When due to natural disaster or war it becomes impossible to perform a contract, non-performance of such contract shall not make either of the parties liable for breach of contract but this does not include commercial impossibility.

FACTUAL SITUATION) Rakesh a merchant based in Kolkata deals in almonds, which he procures from Indian as well as foreign markets. Vimlesh enters into a contract with Rakesh for supply of 500 kilograms of almonds at 400 per kilogram. The relations between India and Pakistan turned sour and both countries snapped business ties soon after Rakesh agreed to supply almonds to Vimlesh. Rakesh did not deliver almonds to Vimlesh because he mostly procured almonds from Pakistan, which were comparatively cheaper. When asked by Vimlesh, Rakesh said that due to no trade and war like conditions between India and Pakistan he is not in a position to supply him almonds. Vimlesh files a suit for breach of contract.

DECISION:

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: A wilful infringement of patent where the infringing acts were committed without concern for the rights of the patentee or without a good faith belief will result in treble damages to be paid by infringer to the patentee.

FACTUAL SITUATION: GSK a pharmaceutical company has reasons to believe that an existing patent of Pfizer company is erroneous thus it starts manufacturing the medicine on which the so- called erroneous patent of Pfizer exists. Pfizer filed a suit for stopping GSK from manufacturing the medicine and also for treble damages. The court finds the patent valid.

DECISION:

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: A man must not make such use of his property as unreasonably and unnecessarily to cause inconvenience to his neighbours.

FACTUAL SITUATION: X is the owner of a plot measuring 50 feet by 80 feet. He constructed a small house at one corner and was using the rest of the land as a cow shed. He had 20 cows and is involved in selling the milk to the public. The cow dung and other wastes were openly stored in a 30 small 10 feet by 8 feet tank. This constantly paved way for bad smell and breeding of mosquitoes. Y, his neighbour constantly complained to X but in vain.

DECISION:

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: When a future event on which a contract is dependent is the way in which a person will act at an unspecified time, then the event shall be considered to become impossible when such person does anything which renders it impossible that he should so act within any definite time, or otherwise than under further contingencies. If the event becomes impossible, such agreements void.

FACTUAL SITUATION: A agrees to pay B a sum of money if B marries C anytime during A’s life. C marries D and soon thereafter A dies.

QUESTION: Whether agreement between A and B could be enforced, if D dies after one year of marriage and B marries C?

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: A contingent contract is a contract to do or not to do something, if some event, collateral to such contract, does or does not happen.

FACTUAL SITUATION: A agrees to pay B a sum of one lakh if B marries C within a period of six months. B marries C during the seventh month as the marriage hall was available only during that month. B claims rupees one lakh from A.

DECISION:

LEGAL PRINCIPLE: A contract entered into by a minor, who is less than 18 years of age, is void contract and cannot be enforced against the minor in law except for the contract entered by the minor for his necessities.

FACTUAL SITUATION: A, a minor enters into the contract with a book seller. The book seller supplied the school books and stationary as required by A. After receiving the books and stationary, A refuses to pay the book seller on the ground that he is a minor, and as such the contract with the book seller is not enforceable.

DECISION: