Deck 9: Criminal Law and Cyber Crime

Question 1

Acceptance. Judy Olsen, Kristy Johnston, and their mother, Joyce Johnston, owned seventy-eight acres of real property on Eagle Creek in Meagher County, Montana. When Joyce died, she left her interest in the property to Kristy. Kristy wrote to Judy, offering to buy Judy's interest or to sell her own inter­est to Judy She requested that Judy "please respond to Bruce Townsend." In a letter to Kristy-not to Bruce-Judy accepted the offer to buy Kristy's interest in the property By that time, however, Kristy had made the same offer to sell her interest to their brother, Dave, and he had accepted. Did Judy and Kristy have an enforceable binding contract, entitling Judy to specific performance Or did Kristy's offer so limit its acceptance to one exclusive mode that Judy's reply was not effective Discuss.

Answer 1

Offer may be accepted in written form, posted through mail or fax. In the above case, information should be provided using hotline; But D didn't use that medium to communicate.
Facts: JO, KJ and JJ their mother have 78- acres of property. JO and KJ are sisters. JJ died and left her interest to KJ. KJ offered JO either to buy JJ"s inters tot to sell JO's interest to JJ. Consent should be responded to B. J accepted the offer and send her letter to K rather than B. In meanwhile, K offered D (brother) and he accepted the offer.
Outcome: J and K agreement is not binding and enforceable, since K stated while making offer that J's consent should be responded to B rather than K. Thus, J didn't make valid acceptance. Thus, no contract took place between sisters because J didn't accept the contract via the medium specified.

Question 2

Agreement. Ball writes to Sullivan and inquires how much Sullivan is asking for a specific forty-acre tract of land Sullivan owns. Ball then receives a letter from Sullivan stating, "I will not take less than $60,000 for the forty-acre tract as specified." Ball immediately sends Sullivan a fax stating, "I accept your offer for $60,000 for the forty-acre tract as specified." Discuss whether Ball can hold Sullivan to a contract for sale of the land.

Answer 2

No , Mr. B cannot hold Mr. S to a contract for sale of the land.
The statement "I will not take less than $60,000 for the forty-acre tract as specified." by Mr. S was merely an invitation to negotiate, not an offer exactly. It only represents Mr. S was willing to consider the possibility of entering into a contract. There was no intention of a definite promise to sell at $60,000.
Mr. B's attempt to acceptance would not bind the parties to a contract since there does not exist any offer to be accepted, and thus there is no contract between Mr. S and Mr. B.

Question 3

A Question of Ethics-Dispute-Settlement Provisions. Dewayne Hubbert, Elden Craft, Chris Grout, and Rhonda Byington bought computers from Dell Corp. through its Web site. Before buying, Hubbert and the others configured their computers. To make a purchase, each buyer completed forms on five Web pages. On each page, Dell's "Terms and Conditions of Sale" were accessible by clicking on a blue hyperlink. A statement on three of the pages read, "All sales are subject to Dell's Term[s] and Conditions of Sale," but a buyer was not required to click an assent to the terms to complete a purchase. The terms were also printed on the backs of the invoices and on separate documents contained in the shipping boxes with the computers. Among those terms was a "Binding Arbitration" clause.
The computers contained Pentium 4 microprocessors, which Dell advertised as the fastest, most powerful Intel Pentium processor available at that time. Hubbert and the others filed a suit in an Illinois state court against Dell, alleging that this marketing was false, misleading, and deceptive. The plaintiffs claimed that the Pentium 4 microprocessor was slower and less powerful, and provided poorer performance, than either a Pentium III or an AMD Athlon, and at higher cost. Dell asked the court to compel arbitration.
1. Should the court enforce the arbitration clause in this case If you were the judge, how would you rule on this issue
2. In your opinion, do shrink-wrap, click-on, and browse- wrap terms impose too great a burden on purchasers Why or why not
3. An ongoing complaint about shrink-wrap, click-on, and browse-wrap terms is that sellers (often large corporations) draft them and buyers (typically individual consumers) do not read them. Should purchasers be bound in contract by terms that they have not even read Why or why not

Answer 3

Arbitration is a technique which is used to solve conflicts outside the court. In other words, conflicts solved in between the parties that are involved in the contract. Arbitration is different from judicial proceedings. An arbitration clause in the contract states that case needs to be solved outside court and it binds the parties involved. It helps to lessen the burden on the courts.
Facts: In the given case four persons buy computers from D Corp., to complete the purchase, each person completed web form. Terms and conditions of D Corp. were available on the web page but purchase could be made without consenting to it. Same were printed on the shipping box with the computer. Later it was found that the processor was not the fastest as claimed. Buyers filed suit against the D Corp. in return D Corp. appealed the court for arbitration.
1.
Online offers contain provisions to include in it. It may also contain an arbitration clause specifying that any court can go for arbitration clause produced in its designated form. Therefore, the court can enforce arbitration clause.
Being a judge is a huge responsibility as in the given case; since the terms include the arbitration clause which makes person H bound by the contract. Even though, D Corp. was indulged in false marketing, but being bound by the contract that included arbitration. The case should be solved outside the court.
2.
Shrink-Wrap Agreement includes terms in the box in which goods are packaged. Click-On Agreement includes the box "I accept" or "I agree", by clicking on these boxes; buyer is bound by the contract. Browse-wrap Terms includes the terms which buyer does not need to consent and they are generally unenforceable.
These terms are made to protect the seller. However, these terms create a burden on buyers as these terms and condition are quite long which is mostly ignored by the buyer. By clicking on any of the specified conditions, buyer is agreeing to specified contract. Therefore, these terms and condition should be concise and should be easily understood by the buyers.
3.
It is not necessary by law to read all terms and conditions to be bound by agreements. However, clicking on the "I agree" box, buyers are bound by the contracts. These terms are made to protect the sellers and these contracts are similar to paper contracts. To make consumers aware of the terms and condition, terms and conditions should be highlighted as this make terms and condition notice. They should be concise and should be written in simple words so that buyers can comprehend them.

Question 4

Fidelity Corporation offers to hire Ron to replace Monica, who has given Fidelity a month's notice of intent to quit. Fidelity gives Ron a week to decide whether to accept. Two days later, Monica decides not to quit and signs an employment contract with Fidelity for another year. The next day, Monica tells Ron of the new contract. Ron immediately faxes a formal letter of acceptance to Fidelity. Do Fidelity and Ron have a contract Why or why not

Question 5

Business Law Critical Thinking Group Assignment. To download a specific app to your smartphone or tablet device, you usually have to check a box indicating that you agree to the company's terms and conditions. Most individuals do so without ever reading those terms and conditions. Print out a spe­cific set of terms and conditions from a downloaded app to use in this assignment. (Everyone in the class must print the same terms and conditions).
1. One group will determine which of these terms and condi­tions are favorable to the company.
2. Another group will determine which of these terms and conditions conceivably will be favorable to the individual.

Question 6

Answers to the even-numbered questions in this For Review section can be found in Appendix F at the end of this text.
What elements are necessary for an effective offer What are some examples of nonoffers

Question 7

Ted and Betty Hyatt live in California, a state that has extensive statutory protection for consumers. The Hyatts decided to buy a computer so that they could use e-mail to stay in touch with their grandchildren, who live in another state. Over the phone, they ordered a computer from CompuEdge, Inc. When the box arrived, it was sealed with a brightly colored sticker warning that the terms enclosed within the box would govern the sale unless the customer returned the computer within thirty days. Among those terms was a clause that required any disputes to be resolved in Tennessee state courts. The Hyatts then signed up for Internet service through CyberTool, an Internet service provider. They downloaded CyberTool's software and clicked on the "quick install" box that allowed them to bypass CyberTool's "Terms of Service" page. It was possible to read this page by scrolling to the next screen, but the Hyatts did not realize this. The terms included a clause stating that all disputes were to be submitted to a Virginia state court. As soon as the Hyatts attempted to e-mail their grandchildren, they experienced problems using CyberTool's e-mail service, which continually stated that the network was busy. They also were unable to receive the photos sent by their grandchildren. Using the information presented in the chapter, answer the following questions.
1. Did the Hyatts accept the list of contract terms included in the computer box Why or why not What is this type of e-contract called
2. What type of agreement did the Hyatts form with CyberTool
3. Suppose that the Hyatts experienced trouble with the computer's components after they had used the computer for two months. What factors will a court consider in deciding whether to enforce the forum-selection clause Would a court be likely to enforce the clause in this contract Why or why not
4. Are the Hyatts bound by the contract terms specified on CyberTool's "Terms of Service" page, even though they did not read it Which of the required elements for contract formation might the Hyatts claim were lacking How might a court rule on this issue

Question 8

Online Acceptance Anne is a reporter for Daily Business Journal, a print publication consulted by investors and other businesspersons. She often uses the Internet to perform research for the articles that she writes for the publication. While visiting the Web site of Cyberspace Investments Corp., Anne reads a pop-up window that states, "Our business newsletter, E-Commerce Weekly, is available at a one-year subscription rate of $5 per issue. To subscribe, enter your e-mail address below and click 'SUBSCRIBE.' By subscribing, you agree to the terms of the subscriber's agreement. To read this agreement, click 'AGREEMENT.'" Anne enters her e-mail address, but does not click on "AGREEMENT" to read the terms. Has Anne entered into an enforceable contract to pay for E-Commerce Weekly Explain.

Question 9

Applied Products, Inc., does business with Beltway Distributors, Inc., online. Under the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, what determines the effect of the electronic documents evidencing the parties' deal Is a party's "signature" necessary Explain.

Question 10

Answers to the even-numbered questions in this For Review section can be found in Appendix F at the end of this text.
In what circumstances will an offer be irrevocable

Question 11

Question with Sample Answer-Acceptances. Chernek, the sole owner of a small business, has a large piece of used farm equipment for sale. He offers to sell the equipment to Bollow for $10,000. Discuss the legal effects of the following events on the offer.
1. Chernek dies prior to Bollow's acceptance, and at the time she accepts, Bollow is unaware of Chernek's death.
2. The night before Bollow accepts, a fire destroys the equipment.
3. Bollow pays $100 for a thirty-day option to purchase the equipment. During this period, Chernek dies, and Bollow accepts the offer, knowing of Chernek's death.
4. Bollow pays $100 for a thirty-day option to purchase the equipment. During this period, Bollow dies, and Bollow's estate accepts Chernek's offer within the stipulated time period.

Question 12

Answers to the even-numbered questions in this For Review section can be found in Appendix F at the end of this text.
What are the elements that are necessary for an effective acceptance

Question 13

Shrink-Wrap Agreements. TracFone Wireless, Inc., sells phones and wireless service. The phones are sold for less than their cost, which TracFone recoups by selling prepaid airtime for their use on its network. Software in the phones prevents their use on other networks. The phones are sold subject to the condition that the buyer agrees "not to tamper with or alter the software." This condition is printed on the packaging. Bequator Corp. bought about 18,000 of the phones, disabled the software so that they could be used on other networks, and resold them. Is Bequator liable for breach of contract Explain.

Question 14

Answers to the even-numbered questions in this For Review section can be found in Appendix F at the end of this text.
How do shrink-wrap and click-on agreements differ from other contracts How have traditional laws been applied to these agreements

Question 15

Spotlight on Crime Stoppers-Communication. The Baton Rouge Crime Stoppers (BCS) offered a reward for information about the "South Louisiana Serial Killer." The information was to be provided via a hot line. Dianne Alexander had survived an attack by a person suspected of being the killer. She identified a suspect in a police photo lineup and later sought to collect the reward. BCS refused to pay because she had not provided information via the hot line. Did Alexander comply with the terms of the offer Explain.

Question 16

Answers to the even-numbered questions in this For Review section can be found in Appendix F at the end of this text.
What is the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act What are some of the major provisions of this act

Question 17

Case Problem with Sample Answer- A cceptance. Troy Blackford smashed a slot machine while he was gambling at Prairie Meadows Casino. He was banned from the premises. Despite the ban, he later gambled at the casino and won $9,387. When he tried to collect his winnings, the casino refused to pay. He filed a suit for breach of contract, arguing that he and the casino had a contract because he had accepted its offer to gamble. Is there a contract between the casino and Blackford Discuss.

Question 18

Online Acceptances. Heather Reasonover opted to try Internet service from Clearwire Corp. Clearwire sent her a con­firmation e-mail that included a link to its Web site. Clearwire also sent her a modem. In the enclosed written materials, at the bottom of a page, in small type was the Web site URL. When Reasonover plugged in the modem, an "I accept terms" box appeared. Without clicking on the box, Reasonover quit the page. A clause in Clearwire's "Terms of Service," accessible only through its Web site, required its subscribers to submit any dispute to arbitration. Is Reasonover bound to this clause Why or why not .