Roles of the Supreme Court of New South Wales - Case Study Example

Part A The case was heard at the New South Wales Supreme Court. 2. The judge’s is Rein AJ. His is Justice since the justices are responsible for hearing cases and passing judgements unless referred to the Chief Justice. 3. According to Jean Murray (2009), plaintiff is the person bringing a civil lawsuit to court or in a criminal case, it might be said that the plaintiff is the state and has to prove a case. In this case, the plaintiff is Peter Smythe and his counsel is B. Kasep while the defendant is Vincent Thomas and his counsel is and D.M. Loewenstein. 4. There are particular circumstances that led Rein AJ to doubt the credibility of the defendant’s version of events. Firstly note should be taken that eBay is not an auctioneer itself but just facilitates the sellers to advertise their products and sell them using an online platform. Whilst the defendant may cite the absence of a legal statute that is binding in the contract, the terms of selling and buying as stipulated by eBay are open and very clear for all the participants to easily understand. Acknowledgement by all the participants is a mandatory requirement for participating. Whilst eBay would only facilitate the payment for the items sold between two parties, both of them would have agreed to the terms and conditions of the bid which is not entered into under any jurisdiction but where the highest bidder walks away with the item. Whilst some differences arose with the defendant arguing that he had not entered into a contract with the plaintiff after he had already made a 10 % payment, it seems that both parties were aware of the deal and the defendant had even given information to the effect that the plane had certificates of fitness and the highest amount of bid he expected. Surprisingly, the defendant’s sworn affidavit is silent about this payment which raises doubts. The plaintiff fulfilled all these terms and conditions stipulated in the conditions for eBay which may be folly for the defendant to argue that he is not legally bound to such a contract after knowingly accepted the terms as provided by eBay which led Rein AJ to doubt his credibility. 5. The defendant argued that there was no binding and enforceable agreement between him and the plaintiff since he argued that it was only eBay which could remove him as a registered member which meant that he had no contract with the client since there is nothing binding if there is an issue of one party defaulting. He argued that the only contract that existed was between him and eBay and between the plaintiff and eBay again without direct relationship between the buyer and the seller. He also argued that placing an advert on eBay was just like placing it in any other classified sections of the press but it seems that he misses the point here since all members are registered to use online auction which is different from responding to a newspaper advertisement. He also argued that since the period of payment was negotiable, it meant that there was no complete contract which gave him the right to pull out of the deal as he wished without any contractual obligation that would bind him to stick to the terms and conditions of the deal. 6. In a traditional auction, agreement is reached after following certain steps. There is prior registration to the auction so as to facilitate identification and items on auction are put on the hammer before all bidders and the highest bidder would be entitled to buy the item. He would then complete his payments after the hammer has been brought down on that item. 7. Rein A J outlined some differences between traditional auction and online auction which would be discussed as follows. Users of online auction are often registered and often regarded as members while with traditional auctions there is no need for permanent registration but on temporary basis especially on the auction day alone. In traditional auction there is a human agent unlike online auction. Online auctions can use another format namely a fixed price format known as ‘buy it now.’ If somebody is interested in buying an item using this format, he just clicks where it is written buy it now without bidding like in traditional auction. In online auction, potential buyers search the eBay website and place bids and upon expiry of the listing, the highest bidder gets the opportunity to buy the item whereas in traditional auction, the whole process is a one time off event. One major difference is that the transactions using online method are consummated between the buyer and the seller. On the other hand, with regards to traditional auction, the seller can at any time before the hammer is lowered withdraw his goods from sale. 8. Rein A J regards the automatic close of bidding at a fixed time using computer system in the eBay auction as the equivalent of the fall of the hammer in a traditional auction. The significance of each is that they herald the close of bidding and the highest bidder will buy the item. 9. The order for specific performance of the contract is appropriate in this case since it will provide with the final, legally binding terms that would not be disputed by the other party in an apparent breach of contract. This will make the contract binding. 10. It was not made in this case because there has been no special provision outlining its legal bond that can be used as insurance to ensure that no other party would renege on his contractual obligation. 11. Whenever there is a dispute in the judgement of a case passed especially from a lower court for instance the Magistrate’s Court, an appeal is made to the High Court and if still there is dispute an appeal is made to the Supreme Court which is the highest court on land. Basically, the primary role of the Supreme Court is to interpret the constitutional law. It is also responsible for settling disputes while at the same time interpreting the law. It is against this background that the case involving Peter Smythe v Vincent Thomas [2007] NSWSC 844 (3 August 2007) was heard in the Supreme Court since it has some provisions that are not legally instituted as binding in the event of a contract. The defendant is arguing that he is not legally bound to any contract with regards to eBay or online auction and the terms and conditions are not very explicit, the reason there is a hearing in the Supreme Court in order for the Justices to interpret the law through inferences to such similar cases. Part B 1. An agreement can be loosely defined as acceptance by another party to do something for each other in exchange of something. A close analysis of the scenario involving Tom and his friends shows that he did not reach that agreement willingly. After offering to sell his motorbike for $5 000 to Dick, he instead refused but instead offered to pay $4 000 which did not satisfy Tom. Probably after certain considerations, Tom settled for $4 500 as a compromise between the two prices that had been debated about. As an afterthought, Dick later offered the $5 000 Tom wanted but he had already sold the motorbike to Hary for $4 500 instead. This cannot be said to be any agreement made whole heartedly but was reached as a compromise after failing to settle for the price he wanted as well as that which was demanded by his friend. 2 By any standard, Lotty is obliged to share the lottery winnings amongst the group of workmates at McMuffins Ltd. By virtue of agreeing to pay equal amounts to buy lottery tickets and share the winnings equally, these employees had agreed to enter into a contract. Thus, according to information obtained online, a contract is an agreement between two or more individuals, businesses, organisations or government agencies. In a contract one person offers to do something and another person accepts that offer in return for something. A critical analysis shows that these people had agreed on something that is binding and therefore can be enforceable since no single person can have the right to pull out of such an agreement without the consent of others. Online definition posits to the effect that contracts as can be noted can be written, using formal or informal terms or can be entirely verbal. If one party fails to live up to his/her part of the bargain, then theres a "breach" of the contract and certain remedies for solving the differences are available. Any attempt to reclaim the proceeds from the amount won would be tantamount to a breach of contract which can even lead to persecution. Whether verbally agreed or written, the terms of a contract apply and are enforceable unless otherwise agreed by all parties involved for any change. It can therefore be noted that Lotty has no right whatsoever to take the money alone as this would be theft. References Consumer law, what is a contract? Accessed on 24 Aug. 09, from: http://www.paralegaladvice.org.za/docs/chap11/02.html Jean Murray, What is a plaintiff? Accessed 24 August, from: http://biztaxlaw.about.com/od/glossaryp/g/plaintiff.htm What is a contract? Accessed on 24 August 2009, from: http://law.freeadvice.com/general_practice/contract_law/contract_agreement.htm What is a defendant? Accessed 24 August 2009, from: http://www.videojug.com/expertanswer/courtroom-players-2/what-is-a-defendant Supreme Court of New South Wales Decisions, Peter Smythe v Vincent Thomas [2007] NSWSC 844 (3 August 2007), accessed on 24 Aug. 09, 2009 from: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/nsw/supreme_ct/2007/844.html Roles of the Supreme Court, Accessed on 24 August 2009, from: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_role_of_the_US_Supreme_Court What is the role of the Supreme Court? Accessed on 24 Aug. 09, from: http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4723 Consumer law review: Call for evidence, accessed on 24 August 2009, from: http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file45196.pdf Read More