At least two weeks of my first semester of Contracts is spent examining the concept of "offer." When and under what circumstances does a person's expression amount to an offer? If an offer is made, how long does it last? And, assuming the offer is still alive, what amounts to its acceptance?
All good questions for a class in contract law but what about offers in other areas of the law? Trademark law, patent law, securities law, and even the criminal law use the word "offer" but does "offer" in those fields mean the same thing as it does in Contracts?
In short, the answer is no. For those who want a fuller explanation I recommend a recent article by my Campbell Law School colleague Lucas Osborn, "Offer to Sell" as a Policy Tool (abstract here). Lucas contrasts the purpose of "offer" in contract law (balancing the private law policies of freedom to contract and freedom from contract) with the public law purposes underlying the criminal and administrative law regimes. Overall, a deft job of unpacking and explaining the what's and why's of an area of law close to my Contracts professor's heart.
All good questions for a class in contract law but what about offers in other areas of the law? Trademark law, patent law, securities law, and even the criminal law use the word "offer" but does "offer" in those fields mean the same thing as it does in Contracts?
In short, the answer is no. For those who want a fuller explanation I recommend a recent article by my Campbell Law School colleague Lucas Osborn, "Offer to Sell" as a Policy Tool (abstract here). Lucas contrasts the purpose of "offer" in contract law (balancing the private law policies of freedom to contract and freedom from contract) with the public law purposes underlying the criminal and administrative law regimes. Overall, a deft job of unpacking and explaining the what's and why's of an area of law close to my Contracts professor's heart.
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