Understanding the Principles of Business Law

Task1 Jackson Fertilisers Ltd (JFL) carried on business making fertilizers for agricultural use. Advise JFL with regards to the following transactions whereby two of their customers are refusing to pay for the goods supplied. A) A sale to Greenwich Nurseries Ltd of three separate consignments of shelled widget nuts, each of which was found on delivery to be contaminated with widget shells as follows: Lot 1 as to 0.03 per cent; Lot 2 as to 9.7 per cent; Lot 3 as to 73 per cent. B) One bag of copra cake sole to Rose-Hill Rose Centre at a specially low price. The cake was so adulterated with castor oil that all the buyers roses dies after being treated with it. Such copra was normally sold for use on root crops and would not have harmed root crops. JFL knows nothing of the peculiarities of roses. Task 2 Last summer, Angela went on a spending spree and signed in respect of the following items three conditional sale agreements with Credit Finance Ltd, each of which complied with all legal formalities: a television for 785, including a 50 charge for aerial erection; a video recorder for 690; and a second-hand moped for 300. So far, Angela has paid under the three agreements respectively 270, 240 and 90. Having just been made redundant, Angela has not made any payments in respect of the instalments due last month. She has just received a notice informing her that, as all three accounts are in arrears, Credit Finance Ltd have instructed ABC Repossessions Ltd to repossess all three items. Besides asking you to advice generally, Angela in particular asked the following question. 1) As to the television, whether she must honour a term of the agreement allowing Credit Finance Ltd entry to her flat at any reasonable time of day to collect their goods. 2) As to the video recorder, whether she should accept the return of the last 20 instalment in respect of which Credit Finance Ltd claim that the clerk to whom she made payment had no authority to accept it. 3) As to the moped, whether she can safely continue to park it overnight under her car-park. Task 3 Cocoa, a major input into the chocolate making process is imported by two companies namely, Best Chocolate Ltd and Sweet Candy Ltd. Best Chocolate Ltd is the major importer and supplies over 80% of the cocoa on the island. Two years ago, Best Chocolate Ltd opened a subsidiary chocolate company, Kitville, thus entering into the chocolate manufacturing and distribution market in the country. In so doing, Best Chocolate Ltd made a strategic decision that it will only supply cocoa to companies who use cocoa for purposes other than chocolate production. Best Chocolate Ltds cocoa is regarded as the best cocoa known in this part of the world and is ideal for making delicious and creamy chocolates. Best Chocolate Ltd has an exclusive agreement with the grower of this cocoa in Colombia. Sweet Candy Ltds cocoa is not premium and the quality has been questioned. You are required to advise on the impact the above can have on competition. Task 4 TopClothes is a large UK clothes outlet for leading brands in many cities. The company is considering creating a try-it-online web site for customers to visualise through the web site how clothes look on themselves. Topclothes is not the first company to provide an online provision of this type. 1) Explain how TopClothes can protect its intellectual property for the new service using: i) trade marks; ii) copyright and design rights; iii) domain names. 2) Another UK company, Virtualretail, has complained that TopClothes has copied its ideas for the ecommerce facility and is therefore infringing its intellectual property rights. On what grounds might Virtualretail take legal action? Task 1 JFL is in the business of making fertilizers. These fertilizers are used for agriculture purpose. It has made certain sale to certain customers who have refused to pay for the goods supplied to them Shelled widget nuts were sold under three separate consignments to Green which Nurseries Ltd. the sale was made in three separate lots and each lot was contaminated with widget shell. When widget shell gets contaminated than the quality of the fertilizers deteriorate. As per part II section 6 of sale of goods Act in case if goods have perished or the quality is very bad then the contract stands void. The buyer needs to establish the fact that the quality was such at the time of sale. (Sale of Goods Act, 1979) In our case Lot 1 and Lot 2 will not get rejected as they are contaminated but with very less percentage but the Lot3 will get rejected as it has 73% contamination. Here the when Rose Hill Rose Center used the copra cake on the roses all of them died. This question can be answered in both ways. First it was the duty of the seller to inform the buyer regarding the usability of the product. Al least it should have quoted the uses and non-uses over the product cover. So in such case as per Sale of Goods Act, the seller has to compensate the buyer for such loss. On the other side it was the responsibility of the buyer to get full information for the product it has purchased and use it as per the prescription. So in the other case the seller will not be required to compensate for the loss. (Sale of Goods Act, 1979) Task 2 Angela purchased under installment payment system from Credit Finance Ltd three things. One was a television which was for 785 but she paid till date only 270, the other was a video recorder which was of 690 and she paid only 240 till date and the last one was second hand moped which was of 300 and she paid till date 90. She failed to honor the coming installment. As per Sale of Goods Act, in case if the buyer is unable to pay price at the time when it becomes due then the seller has a right to repossess the goods after waiting for a stipulated period. So in our case Credit Finance Ltd can reposes all three goods sold to Angela under installment payment system. Regarding the time at which the company can enter the flat is during the day time and not at the night time. Here she paid 20 to clerk of Credit Finance Ltd. here in case if the clerk has no authority to collect the amount and such was within the knowledge of Angela then she can sue the clerk but she has to make separate payment to the company. Clerk working with the company has a right to get money due from the customers of the company in which it works. In such case the company can demand from the clerk No, she cannot now park the moped. It will be repossessed by the company. Task 3 Best chocolate Ltd and Sweet Candy Ltd are the major importers of Cocoa which is the major input to the chocolate making process. Best Ltd import 80% of the total import. The company has made a subsidiary company and allotted the distribution to it. It has made a strategic decision that it will supply cocoa to only those industries which use it for producing for purposes other than chocolate. This is a case where the company Best Ltd is trying to create a situation that will lead to monopoly of its possession. It has entered into restrictive trade practice agreement wherein the dealer were not allowed to use the cocoa to produce chocolate. Such agreement and rule made by the company is void ab initio. The answer is made as per Competition Commission Act 1998. (Legislation.gov.uk, 1998) Task 4 Trademarks: The Company can register trademark for the company itself or for the product it sell. The company should be careful regarding it does not copy the trademark that already exists. The name should not be similar. The company can take permission from those already registered and then can make its own trademark Copyrights and design rights: Such right can be used for a particular number of years after which it expires. If the design of the company is innovative that it never existed in the market than it can get it process or idea patented or its new design patented. The right is also limited to particular number of years after which it expires iii. Domain names : The domain name should also be such that it does not match with the domain name of other existing companies. The company Virtualretial can take legal action on TopClothes for copying their idea for the e commerce facility. It can sue the company and demand compensation for breach of infringement rights References Sale of Goods Act 1979, 2008, Agreement of sections, viewed on 11th January 2015. Legislation.gov.uk, 1998, Competition Act 1998, , viewed on 11th January 2015