Reeves v O'Riley

[2013] QCA 229

Queensland Court of Appeal

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For Australian Law.

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Contract
2. › Formation of contractual relations
3. › Offer and acceptance
4. › Correspondence between solicitors
5. › Whether letters constituted offer capable of acceptance
6. › Whether acceptance was unqualified
7. › Uncertainty as to identity of parties
1. Contract
2. › Formation of contractual relations
3. › Agreements contemplating execution of formal document
4. › Whether parties intended to be bound immediately
5. › First category in Masters v Cameron
6. › Whether execution of transfer documents was condition precedent or merely implementation
1. Contract
2. › Formation of contractual relations
3. › Certainty of terms
4. › Whether offer uncertain as to identity of party liable to provide consideration
5. › Whether reference to 'gift' created uncertainty
6. › Property Law Act 1974 (Qld), s 59
1. Real Property
2. › Sale or other disposition of land
3. › Statute of frauds
4. › Note or memorandum in writing
5. › Whether letter of offer written before contract formation can constitute memorandum of resulting contract
6. › Whether solicitor had authority to sign memorandum
7. › Property Law Act 1974 (Qld), s 59

Quick Take

A letter from a party's solicitors setting out the terms of an offer to transfer property, written on the party's instructions, can constitute a sufficient memorandum for the purposes of s 59 of the Property Law Act 1974 (Qld) even though it pre-dates the formation of the contract. The solicitor's authority to sign the memorandum can be inferred from the circumstances, including that the letter was written on the client's instructions, and it is not necessary that the solicitor have authority to sell the property itself.