Question 1 OR (a)
Critical comments: natural love and affection; mere silence; ratification by a minor
12 marks
- Time to write
- About 24 minutes
- Notes
- Crux notes
Question
Question 1 OR (a) · 12 marks(OR)
Comment critically on each of the following:
No consideration is needed for a promise to pay made on account of natural love and affection
Silence alone is not fraudulent
A minor cannot ratify his agreements after he attains majority.
Reworded from the university paper; the task is the same. The original paper belongs to the University of Delhi. See DU's question bank.
Before you write
Read off the question and its marks
Read from the question
- (a)–(iii)4 items, each marked on its own: give each its share.
- criticallyBoth sides: the strengths, the limits, then your own view.
Write it in this order
The parts stand alone: start with the one you are surest of.
- Read; underline the asks; jot your points 2 min
- 1 (i) Natural love and affection: the four conditions of s. 25(1) 4 marks 7 min
- 2 (ii) Mere silence and its exceptions (s. 17 Explanation) 4 marks 7 min
- 3 (iii) No ratification of a minor's agreement 4 marks 6 min
- Check: every ask answered, key terms underlined 2 min
Short on time? A few lines on every part beat a full answer to one: each part is capped at its own marks.
Try it first. About 24 minutes for 12 marks. Write it out, then open the solution.
Solution
Hover or tap a marked figure, like 72,000, to see how it is made and where else it appears.
(i) No consideration is needed for a promise to pay made on account of natural love and affection: partly true. The rule is "no consideration, no contract" (s. 25), and natural love and affection is an exception only when all four conditions of section 25(1) are met: the promise is made out “of natural love and affection, between parties standing in a near relation”, in writing, and registered under the law. A registered written promise by a husband to pay his earnings to his wife was held valid without consideration. A promise that is oral, unregistered or between strangers is void for want of consideration, however much affection prompts it.
1Sixteen-year-old Dev, school bag still on, signs for a new cycle on credit.
Section 11A person who has not attained the age of majority (18 years) is not competent to contract.
2In court, the seller throws up his hands: the law never counted Dev's signature.
Agreement is voidThe minor cannot be made to repay as on a contract.
3Dev had claimed to be older—so the judge makes him return the cycle he still holds, and nothing more.
RestitutionWhere a minor obtains property or money by falsely representing himself to be a major, the court may, on equitable grounds, order him to restore what he still holds; he is not liable for any amount he has already spent.
(ii) Silence alone is not fraudulent: true, subject to exceptions. Under the Explanation to the Act's definition of fraud, mere silence as to facts likely to affect a person's willingness to enter into a contract is not fraud, unless the circumstances are such that it is the duty of the person keeping silence to speak, or his silence is, in itself, equivalent to speech. So silence is fraud where there is a duty to disclose, or where silence is meant to answer a direct question.
(iii) A minor cannot ratify his agreements after he attains majority: true. A minor's agreement is void ab initio, and a void agreement cannot be ratified; a minor cannot ratify a contract on attaining majority, though he may always plead minority. If he wishes to be bound, he must make a fresh contract with fresh consideration.
Where the 12 marks sit
| # | Component | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | (i) Natural love and affection: the four conditions of s. 25(1) | 4 |
| 2 | (ii) Mere silence and its exceptions (s. 17 Explanation) | 4 |
| 3 | (iii) No ratification of a minor's agreement | 4 |
| Total | 12 |
Report a problemopens an email to admin@getkunji.com with the question ID202-Q1aORalready filled in.