Contract Law is a foundational area within the SQE1 syllabus, covering the creation, interpretation, enforcement, and termination of legally binding agreements. It forms a core part of the Functioning Legal Knowledge (FLK1) assessment and includes several subtopics:
Core Principles of Contract Law
- Formation of Contracts
- Offer and Acceptance
- Consideration
- Intention to Create Legal Relations
- Capacity to Contract
- Certainty and Completeness
- Formalities (e.g., deeds, written contracts)
- Contents of Contracts
- Express Terms
- Implied Terms (statutory and common law)
- Conditions, Warranties, and Innominate Terms
- Exclusion Clauses and Limitations of Liability
- Contractual Interpretation
- Vitiating Factors
- Misrepresentation
- Mistake (common, mutual, unilateral)
- Duress and Undue Influence
- Illegality and Public Policy
- Performance, Breach, and Termination
- Discharge by Performance
- Discharge by Agreement
- Discharge by Frustration
- Breach of Contract (actual and anticipatory)
- Remedies for Breach
- Damages (expectation, reliance, restitution)
- Specific Performance and Injunctions
- Quantum Meruit and Restitution
- Liquidated Damages and Penalty Clauses
- Third Party Rights
- Privity of Contract
- Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999
- Agency and Assignment