Chapter 15 - Statute of Frauds

1. Henry orally promises to sell his house to Beanna for $225,000. On the day after the agreement is entered into, Bernard offers Henry $235,000 for the house, and Henry orally agrees to sell him the house. The next day, Tanya offers to rent the house from Henry for one year at $1,000 per month and Henry orally agrees to the lease. If Beanna, Bernard and Tanya sue Henry to enforce their respective agreements, what will a court decide? Contractual obligations aside, as among the three innocent parties, to whom does Henry owe the greater ethical duty to honor his agreement in your view? Why?

Chapter 17 - Performance and breach

2. What is the difference, and what are the similarities, between discharge through impossibility of performance and discharge through commercial impracticability of performance?

Provide an example of each.

Chapter 18 - Remedies

3. Arsenio, an artist, agrees to paint a portrait of Jenny for $1,000. After entering into the contract but before either party has performed, Jenny is dismissed from her job and would like to cancel a contract that is now for her an unaffordable luxury.

a. If Arsenio refuses to cancel the contract, can Jenny claim her impossibility to pay as circumstances that will discharge the contract?

b. If Arsenio agrees to let Jenny off the hook, how should the parties go about discharging the contract?

c. If both parties verbally agree not to sue one another, is there any real reason for executing a formal release?