''Byrne & Co v Leon Van Tien Hoven & Co''

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5 CPD 344 is a leading

English contract law English contract law is the body of law that regulates legally binding agreements in England and Wales. With its roots in the lex mercatoria and the activism of the judiciary during the industrial revolution, it shares a heritage with countries ...

case on the issue of

revocation Revocation is the act of recall or annulment. It is the cancelling of an act, the recalling of a grant or privilege, or the making void of some deed previously existing. A temporary revocation of a grant or privilege is called a suspension. Cont ...

in relation to the

postal rule The posting rule (or mailbox rule in the United States, also known as the "postal rule" or "deposited acceptance rule") is an exception to the general rule of contract law in common law countries that acceptance of an offer takes place when com ...

. In it Lindley J of the High Court's Common Pleas Division ruled that an offer is only revoked by direct communication with the offeree, and that the postal rule does not apply in revocation; while simply posting a letter counts as a valid acceptance, it does not count as valid revocation.

Facts

Van Tienhoven & Co posted a letter from their office in

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to Byrne & Co in

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offer Offer or offers may refer to: People * Ofer Eshed or Offer Eshed (1942-2007), Israeli basketball player * Offer Nissim (born 1964), Israeli house DJ * Avner Offer, economic historian * Dick Offer, English rower * Jack Offer, English rower * Steve ...

ing 1000 boxes of

tinplate Tinplate consists of sheets of steel coated with a thin layer of tin to impede rusting. Before the advent of cheap milled steel, the backing metal was wrought iron. While once more widely used, the primary use of tinplate now is the manufacture of ...

s for sale on 1 October. Byrne and Co got the letter on 11 October. They

telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...

ed acceptance on the same day. But on 8 October Van Tienhoven had sent another letter withdrawing their offer, because tinplate prices had just risen 25%. They refused to go through with the sale.

Consequences

Lindley J held that the withdrawal of the offer was not effective until it was communicated. His judgment stated the following: Lindley's judgment notes in part that the postal rule cases which he reviewed include an express or implied consent by an offeror to treat an answer duly sent by post as an acceptance.

Rule of law

Revocation of an offer must be received and understood by the offeree before it comes into effect. An acceptance by the offeree before they receive notice of the revocation will be considered valid.

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrne and Co v Leon Van Tienhoven and Co English agreement case law Lord Lindley cases 1880 in case law 1880 in British law High Court of Justice cases

Facts

Consequences

Rule of law

See also

Notes and references