JC loves movies. He has a huge DVD collection in his home and di
1. Answer all questions according to the study guide and cite laws or status based on study guide
2. Remember to cite relevant case law and/or statute
3. Plagiarism check MUST BE DONE
Commercial Law Assignment 1
Section A: FOUR (4) Short Answer Questions (40 marks).
Instructions: Questions 1 to 4 are short answer questions.
Answer all FOUR (4) questions. Each question carries TEN (10) marks.
Please cite relevant case law and/or statute.
Question 1
JC loves movies. He has a huge DVD collection in his home and displays them in glass cabinets in his living room. One day, the police show up at his home and arrest him for “selling DVDs without a licence”.
Advise JC of the validity of the charges.
Question 2
When British businessman Manfred Lewis travels to Singapore for business, he always stays at the same hotel, The Class Holiday Hotel. There is an exemption clause notice in the rooms suggesting that the management is not liable for any loss of valuables.
Having stayed in the hotel in the past, suggest if the notice would be binding on Manfred should he stay in the hotel again.
Question 3
Toh & Sons, an SME in Singapore, wanted to revise the employment contract terms for all their employees. They sent out a memo to all staff saying that their employment contracts have been amended, and that the company has taken it that all staff have agreed and are bound by the new terms.
Briefly suggest if the company can adopt such an approach with regards to unilaterally amending its employees’ contract terms.
Question 4
When a company is formed, it is said to be distinct and separate from the member who set up this company.
Briefly explain the “veil of incorporation” of a company.
Section B: TWO (2) Essay Questions (40 marks).
Instructions: Questions 5 and 6 are essay questions.
Answer BOTH questions.
Each question carries TWENTY (20) marks.
Please cite relevant case law and/or statute.
Question 5
Chuck advertised his BMW car for sale at $200,000 cash. Charles came to accept the offer, but told Chuck he could only pay $100,000 cash and promised to pay the remaining $100,000 in two installments. Chuck said nothing.
Shortly after, Don came to view the car, and told Chuck that if he (Don) hears no more from Chuck by the next day, he will consider the car as his for $140,000. Again, Chuck remained silent.
Later that the evening, Eric came to view the car and told Chuck that $200,000 was “rather expensive”. He asked if Chuck would accept $120,000 cash. Chuck rejected this.
The next day, Fred came to view the car and after some discussion, agreed to Chuck’s price of $200,000. Chuck sold the BMW car to Fred for $200,000.
Charles, Don and Eric each believe they have a legally binding contract with Chuck, and as such are now contemplating legal action against him for “breach of contract”.
Required: Advise the parties of their legal positions with regards to contract law.
Question 6
Richard entered into negotiations with Jasmine, a property agent, for the purchase of a five-room re-sale flat in the Redhill area.
Richard told Jasmine that the flat he wished to purchase must be free of any adverse incident in its history. In other words, nothing terrible must have happened inside the flat. Richard explained that his wife was very superstitious over such matters.
Two weeks later, Jasmine chanced upon a seller of a five-room flat in the Redhill area who wished to sell his flat due to a murder that occurred in that flat when it was rented out to foreign workers. Believing that Richard would never know the truth behind the flat’s history, Jasmine took it upon herself to make false representations to Richard in an effort to get the flat sold to him and thereby earn her commission.
Jasmine then told Richard that she had found a flat for him. After viewing the flat, Richard again stipulated his condition that nothing out of the ordinary should have happened in the flat. Jasmine assured him that no such incident had occurred, stating that the current owners were selling the flat because they were emigrating to Australia.
After buying the flat and moving in, Richard’s neighbour told him that the former occupants of flat were two China nationals who were renting it while working in Singapore and that one day, during a drinking session, one killed the other in the flat. The previous owner, said the neighbour, felt that the flat carried a bad omen now and decided to sell it off. Adding further, the neighbour said he was surprised that Richard did not know this before buying the flat.
Required: Enraged, Richard now intends to rescind the contract. Discuss the grounds upon which the contract for the sale of flat could be rescinded.
,
Study Guide
HIGHER EDUCATION HIGHER EDUCATION
ACADEMY INSTITUTE
Diploma Programme
Commercial Law v2.0
Copyright © 2021 Kaplan Singapore. All rights reserved. i
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Kaplan Desired Graduate Attributes
Through the reading of this module, Kaplan Singapore intends to:
• Instill in students the value of lifelong and self- directed learning by stimulating intellectual curiosity, creative and critical thinking and an awareness of cultural diversity;
• Assist students in developing professional attributes, ethical values, social skills and strategies that will nurture success in both their professional and personal lives;
• Foster integrity, commitment, responsibility and a sense of service to the community;
• Prepare students to meet the ever-changing needs of their communities both now and in the future; and
• Promote innovative and effective teaching.
Culminating from these institutional values and educational goals, Kaplan Singapore’s Desired Graduate Attributes are:
Inquiry and criticality: Graduates will be able to critically collect, evaluate and apply information and data in order to make decisions in a wide variety of professional situations. This attribute is demonstrated when students:
• Undertake, evaluate and apply appropriate research, theories, concepts and tools to investigate problems and find solutions;
• Exercise critical thinking and independent judgement to assess situations and determine solutions; and
• Have an informed respect for the principles, methods, values and boundaries of their profession and the capacity to question these.
Ethicality and discernment: Graduates will be able to assess situations and respond in an ethically, socially and professionally responsible manner. This attributed is demonstrated when students:
• Act responsibly, ethically and with integrity in their profession;
• Hold personal values and beliefs and participate in the broad discussion of these values and beliefs while respecting the views of others;
• Understand the broad local and global economic, political, social and environmental systems and their impact as appropriate to their discipline and profession; and
• Acknowledge personal responsibility for their own judgments and behaviour
Ability to communicate well: Graduates will recognise the importance and value of communication in the learning and professional environment. This attributed is demonstrated when students:
• Create and present knowledge, arguments and ideas confidently and effectively using a variety of methods and technologies;
• Recognise the wide range of possible audiences for information and respond with communication strategies appropriate to those audiences; and
• Work collaboratively with people from diverse backgrounds and be aware of the different roles of team members and to function within that team.
Independent and reflective practitioner • Graduates will be able to work independently and
be self-directed learners with the capacity and motivation for continued professional learning and development; and
• They will be able to critically reflect on their own practice and evaluate and understand current capacity and further development needs
Embedded within the desired graduate attributes are the following skills: • Conduct research. • Analyse, organise and present data and
information. • Think and read critically. • Make an oral presentation. • Intellectual curiosity and awareness of culture and
diversity. • Develop professional ethos and practice that will
foster success in career and life. • Meet the ever changing needs of communities
now and in the future.
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Table of Contents
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Kaplan Desired Graduate Attributes Table of Contents About this module Instructions to Students Scheme of Work Assessment Matters
Topic 1 Introduction to Law
Topic 2 The Law of Contract: Offer & Acceptance
Topic 3 The Law of Contract: Consideration & Intention to Create Legal Relations
Topic 4 Terms of a Contract
Topic 5 Exemption Clauses
Topic 6 Factors Vitiating a Contract
Topic 7 Discharge of Contract & Remedies for Breach of Contract
Topic 8 The Law of Tort
Topic 9 Sale of Goods
Topic 10 Business Organisations 101
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About this module
Commercial law is the body of law that governs the broad areas of business, consumer transactions, and commerce. The application of commercial law has developed a specific set of laws that apply to commercial activities, pursuits, and transactions. All businesses use commercial law to create wealth, and to identify and mitigate risks.
Included in the discussions are the Law of Torts, essential in understanding non-contractual obligations of individuals and organisations; the Sales of Goods transactions, an important facet in mercantile transactions; and Business Organisations, the legal entities that exist to facilitate business.
This broad study in commercial law will equip the student with a comprehensive understanding of the laws, i.e. rights and obligations, central to consumer and business transactions, so vital to the success of any thriving economy.
Module Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, the student should be able to:
• Describe the sources of law.
• Explain the elements necessary to create a legally-binding contract.
• Evaluate the importance of terms of a contract.
• Navigate through the factors that could render a contract void or voidable.
• Distinguish between a breach of contract and frustration of contract.
• Appreciate the various remedies available in a breach of contract.
• Demonstrate an understanding of tort law and its effects on business.
• Address the legalities involved in sale of goods transactions.
• Understand and compare the various business entities in Singapore.
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Activity Sheets
It is imperative that you sincerely attempt all the activities in class and document your responses faithfully. These activity sheets are specially designed to scaffold your learning; working through the tasks is an integral part of developing the desired skills.
Also, by making your thinking visible through the activity sheets, it is then possible for your lecturer to provide you with growth producing feedback so that you may improve your performance or have your doubts clarified.
Instructions to Students
How to use this study guide
This study guide consists of written notes that form the main treatise of the subject matter of this module. You are strongly advised to study these notes carefully and thoroughly, as well as, examine the sources that have been cited.
Written quiz and examination will not test beyond the scope of the contents found in the study guide. However, in order to fully address the assessment requirements of the assignment, you will need to research beyond the confines of the study guide. Nevertheless, the materials herein are still a sound basis from which to build the assignment.
Further supporting materials
The study guide is supplemented by the following:
• Reproduced PowerPoint slides used by the lecturers
• Activity sheets
PowerPoint Slides
The PowerPoint slides are meant for the lecturers to signpost the flow of the lesson and for you to have a visual focus when in class. Outside of class, they can also serve to help you recall the activities that took place during the respective lessons so that you might be reminded of key learning points.
However, the PowerPoint slides must NOT replace the need for you to read the written notes in the study guide. The slides alone are INSUFFICIENT for you to gain the necessary understanding of the subject matter. As such, they will NOT prepare you adequately for the various summative assessment components.
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Overview of Learning Resources
Recommended Reading:
Other Suggested Reading:
Other Sources: See Proquest and Newslink databases linked to your Elearn LMS homepage. The National Library Board on North Bridge Road (databases are for Singaporean/PR only).
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Scheme of Work
SESSION TOPICS
FT PT 1 1 Topic 01 Introduction to Law
2 Topic 02 The Law of Contract: Offer & Acceptance
3 2 Topic 03 The Law of Contract: Consideration & Intention to Create Legal Relations
4 Topic 04 Terms of a Contract
5 3 Topic 05 Exemption Clauses
6 Recap of Topics 1-5 Discussion of Assignment Brief
7 4 Topic 06 Factors Vitiating a Contract (part 1)
8 Topic 06 Factors Vitiating a Contract (part 2)
9 5 Topic 07 Discharge of Contract & Remedies for Breach of Contract (part 1)
10 Topic 07 Discharge of Contract & Remedies for Breach of Contract (part 2)
11 6 Topic 08 The Law of Tort (part 1)
12 Topic 08 The Law of Tort (part 2)
13 7 Topic 09 Sale of Goods
14 Topic 10 Business Organisations
Recap of Topics 6-10
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Assessment Matters
Assessment Overview
Assessment 1: Continuous Assessment (Quiz) Weighting: 20% Date: To be confirmed Duration: 10 minutes per quiz Test Format: 5 MCQs per topic
Assessment 2: Examination Weighting: 80% Duration: 2 hours Date: To be confirmed Format: 2 Case Studies
4 Short Answer Questions
Important Policies
Penalties for Plagiarism
Plagiarism in any form is not tolerated by Kaplan Singapore. That said, direct quotations and general similarities of common terms and language mean the E-Learn LMS will often pick up every small similarity so the likelihood of a Turnitin Similarity report recording a result of 0% is unrealistic. After all, no technology is perfect and there is the need for some direct quotation (provided you reference using APA guidelines, of course) and to use commonly accepted terms and language.
TOP TIP: The surest way to succeed is to ensure all work is correctly referenced. Keep a copy of the Kaplan Singapore Academic Works and APA Guide handy when you are typing your assignments and use it to guide you as to correct referencing, citation and other aspects of academic writing.
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Penalties for late submissions
Kaplan Singapore prepares students for the realities of the workforce and further education by requiring students to meet deadlines and submit all work on time. As such, students are required to seek approval and penalties will be imposed on late assignment submissions in accordance with the table below and cited in the Programme Handbook:
No of days late Penalty 1 – 5 days 10% deduction per day from the
marks attained by students. After 5 days Assignments that are submitted
more than 5 days after the due date will not be accepted and it will be deemed as “No Submis- sion”. Student will be required to re-module.
Assignments and Kaplan Learning Management System
Kaplan Singapore School of Diploma Studies requires you to submit Assignments through the Learning Management System (E- Learn LMS). When submitted, your assignment is checked for plagiarism by software called Turnitin linked to the E-Learn LMS. The software is intended to provide one more tool to improve the quality of academic writing and as such will be compulsory for use. It is important to note that this is merely one of many tools available to you and that final decisions about the quality of your work rest with your lecturer.
Assigment Submission: How to Use E-Learn LMS for Assignment Submission
1. You will be enrolled by the School of Diploma Studies Programme Management into the E-Learn LMS system only after your fee payment is confirmed.
2. You will be sent your USER NAME and PASSWORD via email.
3. Reset your password as prompted. 4. Enter the site at the following address:
https://elearn-diploma.kaplan.com.sg 5. To submit assignment please refer to the
LMS Manual
Please refer to your Student Handbook for more details on Penalties for Plagiarism, Misconduct, Examinations Rules and Regulations. Should you have any queries, please contact [email protected]
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Topic 1 Introduction to Computers
Topic 2 Cache Memory
Topic 3 Internal Memory
Topic 4 External Memory
Topic 5 Number Systems
Topic 6 Matrices
Topic 7 Introduction to Problem Solving
Topic 8 MATLAB Environment
Topic 9 MATLAB Functions
Topic 10 Control Structures
Topic 11 Control Structures
Topic 12 Plotting
Topic 13 g
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Study Guide
Topic 1 – Introduction To Law
What is Law?
Law is a system of rules, usually enforced through a set of institutions. Law regulates the
behaviour of individuals, and well as offers rules and regulations that govern all organisations.
It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways, and serves as the foremost social
mediator in the relationships between all parties in a country. (The word “parties” is generally
a term used in law to describe either a person or an organisation. Therefore, it is not
uncommon to hear of term “parties to a contract” or “parties in a dispute”.)
It is therefore no surprise to anyone that law governs a wide variety of social activities. For
example, contract law regulates all commercial transactions such as buying a bus ticket or a
meal to entering in an employment contract or cell phone contract. All these are legally-binding
contracts. Another example would be property law, which defines rights and obligations
related to the transfer and title of real estate between parties. There is also tort law, which
protects the rights of parties even in the absence of any contract, and which allows a claim for
compensation should a party’s rights be violated by another.
Laws are grouped into “public law” and “private law”. Public law governs the relationship
between individuals and the state. Falling into this category are constitutional law,
administrative law and criminal law. Private law governs the relationships between individuals,
such as the law of contracts and the law of tort.
Commercial law (also known as business law) is the body of law which governs businesses
and commercial transactions. It is often considered to be a branch of civil law and deals both
with issues of private law and public law.
What do we need law?
Laws are very important for human beings to live a dignified and secured lifestyle. Laws
generally provide us a sense of security. A society lives in comfort knowing that there are
laws to keep them safe, that their rights are protected, as well as ensure that legally-binding
contracts are observed by all parties.
Laws also serve as deterrence for those who would commit crimes. For example, murderers,
thieves, and others with no moral code to live by must be deterred from harming others. If
we did not have laws, chaos would prevail.
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The rule of law
The Rule of Law, in its most basic form, is the principle that no one is above the law. Most
legal systems are based on this principle. It provides that governments and individuals can
only act in accordance with publicly-known laws. These laws must be adopted and enforced
in a manner that is consistent with established conventions, traditions and procedures.
It has been said that the Rule of Law cannot exist without a transparent legal system; the
main components being a clear set of laws that are freely and easily accessible to all, strong
enforcement structures, and an independent judiciary to protect citizens against the arbitrary
use of power by the state, individuals or any other organisation.
Categories of law
Law can be divided into civil law and criminal law.
• Civil law
Civil Law deals with legal relationship between private individuals (commercial or
personal injury disputes, for example). Typically, one-person (the plaintiff) will claim
that the other person’s (the defendant) actions caused him/her harm, and file a civil
suit against that person seeking compensation (i.e. damages) for that harm caused.
• Criminal law
Criminal Law is designed to prevent citizens from deliberately harming each other and
involves actions that have been declared illegal by the state (murder, theft, assault,
etc.). In a criminal case, the State (represented by the Public Prosecutor) brings a
defendant (who is accused of having committed an offence) to trial, and a guilty verdict
usually results in imprisonment, a fine, or both.
Sources of Law Before engaging in the discussion on the sources of laws in Singapore, we need to briefly
examine Singapore’s history.
Modern Singapore was founded by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819. It immediately served as a
trading post of the British Empire. In 1867, the colonies in Southeast Asia were reorganised
and Singapore came under the direct control of Britain as part of the Straits Settlements.
During World War II, the country was occupied by Japan, but returned to British control as a
separate crown colony following Japan’s defeat and surrender in 1945. Self-governance was
obtained in 1959 and in 1963, Singapore became part of the new federation of Malaysia, which
included Malaya, North Borneo and Sarawak. Singapore was expelled from the federation two
years later (due to ideological differences) and became an independent country.
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As a former British colony, the legal system in Singapore is based on the English common
law. There are (generally) four sources of law in Singapore: the constitution, legislation,
subsidiary legislation and legal decisions made by judges.
• The Constitution
The Constitution enshrines the fundamental rights of the individual. It also comprises
the fundamental principles and basic framework for the three organs of state – the
Executive (which consists of the President, Prime Minister and other ministers
responsible for government affairs and accountable to the Parliament), the Legislature
(which consists of the President and Parliament with its legislative authority
responsible for enacting legislation) and the Judiciary (the various courts of law which
operate independent of the Executive and Legislature).
• Legislation
Legislation or statutory laws are written laws enacted by the Singapore Parliament or
other bodies that had power to pass such laws in the past in Singapore. These are
called statutes.
o Statutes
A statute is a formal written enactment of a country’s parliament. Typically, statutes
command or prohibit something, or declare policy.
A statute of the Singapore Parliament begins its life as a Bill. In order for a Bill to
become law, it must go through three readings and it must be passed by a majority
of votes in Parliament. Even after the Third Reading, a Bill does not become law
until it goes the Presidential Council of Minority Rights to ensure that does not
discriminate against any racial or religious minority. The President must also
assent to the Bill and it must be published in the Gazette.
Some examples of Acts are the Sale of Goods Act (Cap 393, 1999 Rev Ed), the
Companies Act (Cap 50, 2006 Rev Ed), and more recently, the Cov
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