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The various statements made by the majority in Bell v Lever Bros Ltd may be taken to mean that the mistake must relate to a fact, the accuracy of which is a condition precedent to liability. If that condition precedent fails and the contract is executory, the contract is unenforceable. If the contract is partly executed in that one of the parties has paid money under the contract, there will be a total failure of consideration, since the contract is void ab initio, with the result that the party paying money under the contract will be able to recover what he has paid. The main difficulty with the tests in Bell v Lever Bros Ltd as applied to the facts of the case is that it is difficult to imagine what will be a fundamental mistake sufficient at common law to render the contract void, short of total destruction of the subject matter of the contract without the knowledge of either party. Alternatively, there appear to be circumstances in which a contract may be declared void at common law on the ground that the shared mistake of the parties renders the contract as originally envisaged legally or physically impossible to perform, such as where the parties mistakenly believe that land is capable of producing a certain quantity of a crop in a given season. Similarly, a contract to take a lease of land may be declared void if,
DOI link for The various statements made by the majority in Bell v Lever Bros Ltd may be taken to mean that the mistake must relate to a fact, the accuracy of which is a condition precedent to liability. If that condition precedent fails and the contract is executory, the contract is unenforceable. If the contract is partly executed in that one of the parties has paid money under the contract, there will be a total failure of consideration, since the contract is void ab initio, with the result that the party paying money under the contract will be able to recover what he has paid. The main difficulty with the tests in Bell v Lever Bros Ltd as applied to the facts of the case is that it is difficult to imagine what will be a fundamental mistake sufficient at common law to render the contract void, short of total destruction of the subject matter of the contract without the knowledge of either party. Alternatively, there appear to be circumstances in which a contract may be declared void at common law on the ground that the shared mistake of the parties renders the contract as originally envisaged legally or physically impossible to perform, such as where the parties mistakenly believe that land is capable of producing a certain quantity of a crop in a given season. Similarly, a contract to take a lease of land may be declared void if,
The various statements made by the majority in Bell v Lever Bros Ltd may be taken to mean that the mistake must relate to a fact, the accuracy of which is a condition precedent to liability. If that condition precedent fails and the contract is executory, the contract is unenforceable. If the contract is partly executed in that one of the parties has paid money under the contract, there will be a total failure of consideration, since the contract is void ab initio, with the result that the party paying money under the contract will be able to recover what he has paid. The main difficulty with the tests in Bell v Lever Bros Ltd as applied to the facts of the case is that it is difficult to imagine what will be a fundamental mistake sufficient at common law to render the contract void, short of total destruction of the subject matter of the contract without the knowledge of either party. Alternatively, there appear to be circumstances in which a contract may be declared void at common law on the ground that the shared mistake of the parties renders the contract as originally envisaged legally or physically impossible to perform, such as where the parties mistakenly believe that land is capable of producing a certain quantity of a crop in a given season. Similarly, a contract to take a lease of land may be declared void if,
ABSTRACT
The various statements made by the majority in Bell v Lever Bros Ltd may be taken to mean that the mistake must relate to a fact, the accuracy of which is a condition precedent to liability. If that condition precedent fails and the contract is executory, the contract is unenforceable. If the contract is partly executed in that one of the parties has paid money under the contract, there will be a total failure of consideration, since the contract is void ab initio, with the result that the party paying money under the contract will be able to recover what he has paid.
