Chapter: Law Of Contract - Question 1

Tutorial Tasks

Question:

Due to a rampant robbery in which the robbers used ski masks to cover their faces, the Cyberjaya Authority issued a regulation that makes it illegal to sell ski masks. As a safety measure, the rule also makes it illegal for anyone to offer for sale the ski masks. In spite of this, Messy has not cleared the ski masks from the shelves of his sport equipment shop in Cyberia. The authority officials came to know about this and later on charged Messy under the new regulation. Advise Messy according to Contracts Act 1950 and relevant decided case(s).

Answer:

Messy is not act illegally and irrelevant to be charged under the new regulation because he did not make an offer to sell since the rule makes it illegal to sell ski masks. According to the definition of Invitation to Treat of Contracts Act 1950, it is just an invitation to make an offer. It is a sort of preliminary negotiation to buy something. Refer to the case of Fisher v. Bell, defendant displayed knives in his shop windows and he was then convicted of a criminal offence of offering such knives for sale. And it is being held that display of any goods with a price tag on it in a shop window was not an offer but rather it was invitation to treat.