Hyde v Wrench [1840] EWHC Ch J90:

Material Facts:

The defendant, Wrench, offered to sell a piece of land to the plaintiff, Hyde, at a price of $1000. The plaintiff initially offered to buy the land at $950, but the defendant refused to accept this price. Later, the plaintiff agreed to pay $1000 for the land as was initially offered by the defendant, but the defendant refused to sell the land even at this price. Plaintiff sued for breach of contract and an order for specific performance.

Issue:

1. Whether or not the original offer by Wrench could still be accepted and give rise to a binding contract after Hyde’s counter offer of $950.

Holding:

That the original offer was no longer valid and a valid contract cannot be formed by its acceptance.

Ratio Decidendi:

The judge ruled that the plaintiff’s counter offer of $950 constituted a rejection of the initial offer made by Wrench. Post the counter-offer from the plaintiff, it was considered not “competent for him to revive the proposal of the defendant, by tendering an acceptance of it; and that, therefore, there exists no obligation of any sort between the parties”

Comments:

What are your comments on the case and the ruling?