Learning Outcome: Students will be able to determine the underlying direction toward which the discussions in contract law tend to take place.

1. Introduction to Law of
Contract
Preeti Kana Sikder
Assistant Professor
Department of Law & Justice
Jahangirnagar University

2. Pre-class poll
Which of the following is a void agreement?
1: A shopkeeper promising to sell the Lalbagh
Fort to his customer
2: Manufacturer residing in Iraq promising to sell
products to US citizen during the Iraq War
3: Both of the above

3. How is Void Agreement different from a
Void Contract?
• Section 2 (g) of the Contract Act, 1872 says that “an
agreement not enforceable by law is said to be
void”.
• There must have been an agreement for the first
time, which does not fulfill one or more of the legal
conditions for becoming a contract.

4. How is Void Agreement different from a
Void Contract?
• An agreement which was enforceable by law but
somehow loses such enforceability is treated as
a void contract.
• It was valid at some point of time.

5. How is Void Agreement different from a
Void Contract?
• The only basic distinction between these two
terms is that a void contract was valid once, but
a void agreement was never in a position to
become enforceable by law.

6. Basis of Contracts

7. The Will Theory
Freedom
of Contract
Sanctity of
Contract

8. WillTheory Law of contract is a set of power-conferring
rules which enable individuals to enter into
agreements of their own choice on their own
terms.
Parties should be as free as possible to make
agreements on their own terms without the
interference of courts or Parliament.
Such agreements shall be respected, upheld
and enforced by the courts.

9. Promise Principle
 Persons may impose on themselves obligations
where none existed before.
 The source of contractual obligation is the promise
itself.
 A promise engenders an expectation in the promisee
and unless a good reason to the contrary appears the
courts will call upon the defaulting promisor to fulfill
the expectation so created.

10. View in Opposition
Suppose A enters into a contract to sell B 10
mangoes for 200 taka. A then refuses to sell the
mangoes. A breaches the contract.
B goes on to buy similar mangoes from another
seller in 200 taka.
Is B at any loss? Can he enforce the promise of A?

11. View in Alteration
Suppose B had paid the 200 taka in advance
to A.
B had acted to his detriment in reliance upon
A’s promise and A has gained a benefit.

12. Not the
promise, but
the detrimental
reliance upon
the promise or
conferment of
benefit in
reliance of the
promise
Source of
obligation

13. ViewinOpposition
o The response of courts and parliaments
have been to place greater limits upon the
exercise of contractual power.
o For example, Legislation has been
introduced to regulate employment
contracts in an effort to provide measure of
protection to employees.

14. DifferentViews
Redistribution of
Wealth
Altruism

15. One can’t even think of the internet layout without Google. Its
competitors are Microsoft and Yahoo but they own a very small share in
the market that too in the downward trend. Google makes the majority
of money from advertising and the same can be clearly seen that it
controls 60% of the global advertising revenue.

16. The Interaction of Opposing Views
While there is indeed a strong current of individualism
running through law of contract, such commitment to
individual autonomy is also tempered in its application by
considerations of fairness, consumerism and altruism.

17. ALTRUISM PROMISE PRINCIPLE DEATH OF CONTRACT

18. Market
Individualism
Consumer
Welfarism

19. “The law of contract is not based
upon one ideology; both
ideologies are present in case law
and legislation. The tension
between the two is a feature of
law of contract.”

20. Thank you