Добавил:
Опубликованный материал нарушает ваши авторские права? Сообщите нам.
Вуз: Предмет: Файл:
Скачиваний:
0
Добавлен:
16.05.2023
Размер:
880.13 Кб
Скачать

11. An agent is exclusively entitled and liable upon

the contract when he contracts on behalf of a principal

who is incapable of making the contract in question.

Furnival v. Coombes (1843), 5 M. & G. 736, & 7 Jur.

399 ; Here the defendants, who were churchwardens and

overseers of the poor, entered into a contract for them-

selves, their successors and assigns, to pay for certain

repairs done to their parish church. In the indenture of

contract there was a proviso to the effect that the de-

fendants were not to be personally liable upon the cove-

nant, as they were making the contract in their corporate

character merely. The Court held that they had no

authority to make the contract in question in their cor-

porate capacity, as they had no common seal to bind

themselves with, and that the proviso must be considered

Void as being repugnant to the general intention of the

Instrument, and that the defendants were personally liable

upon the contract. Tindal, C.J., said ; " The first question

110 The law of agency.

Is whether this is a personal covenant, or a covenant by

defendants as a corporate body. It must fall within the

one class or the other. Churchwardens and overseers,

though they are by statute a corporate body for some

purposes, cannot enter into such a covenant as this in a

corporate character ; and, if not, then the contract must be

a personal covenant."

12. An agent is exclusivel}^ entitled and liable upon

the contract, if the third party has, notwithstanding that he

knew the name of the real principal, elected to treat the

agent as the principal, and to give exclusive credit to him.

Paterson v. Gandaseqid (1812), 15 East. 62, & 2 Sm.

L. C. 10th ed. 355 ; in this case, Gandasequi (a Spanish

merchant) came to England and employed L. and Company

as his agents to purchase him certain goods. Plaintiff sent

samples of the goods required to L. and Company's count-

ing-house, and Gandasequi himself being present inspected

them, selected those he required, and discussed the price

with the plaintiff. L. and Company subsequently ordered

the goods ; and the plaintiff debited the goods to them,

and treated them as his debtors. Ultimately L. and Com-

pany failed, and the plaintiff then sued Gandasequi. The

CJourt held that the defendant was not liable, on the ground

that the i)laiutifi", although he knew that L. and Company

Avere acting as agents, and also knew the real principal's

name, nevertheless chose L. and Company as his debtors,

and gave exclusive credit to them. Lord Ellenborough,

C.J., said; "The law has been settled, by a variety of

cases, that an unknown principal, when discovered, is

liable on the contracts which his agent makes for him : but

that must be taken with some qualification ; and a party

may preclude himself from recovering over against the

f)rincipal, by knowingly making the agent his debtor,"

Addison v. Oandascqui (1812), 4 Taunt. 574, & 2 Sm.

L. C. lOtli ed. r}()l ; the facts in this case were similar

RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF PRINCIPAL AND AGENT. Ill

to those in the last-mentioned case. And, when L. and

Company failed, the plaintiff sued Gandasequi for the

price of the goods, although he had previously chosen, with

a full knowledge of the name of the real principal, to debit

L. and Company with the price. The Court held, upon

the same grounds as in the last case, that the defendant

was not liable.

From the two above cases we must distinguish the case

of Thomson v. Davenport (1829), 9 B. & C. 78, & 2 Sm.

L. C. 10th ed. 368, in which the facts were as follows :

An agent (McKune), when buying certain goods for his

principals, represented to the seller that he was buying

them on behalf of persons resident in Scotland, but he did

not give their name, neither did the seller inquire who

they were, but subsequently debited the agent with the

price of the goods, thus electing him as his debtor. It was

held that the seller, when he discovered the name of the real

principal, could sue him for the price ; seeing that, at the

time when the seller debited the agent, although he knew

that the agent was such, he did not know the name of

the principal. Littledale, J., said ; " It seems to me to

be more consistent with the general principle of law, that

the seller shall have his remedy against the principal

rather than against any other person, to hold in this case,

that the seller who knew that there was a principal, but

did not know who that principal was, may resort to him

as soon as he is discovered. Here the agent did not

communicate to the seller sufficient information to enable

him to debit any other individual. ... It is said that he

ought to have ascertained, by inquiry of the agent, who

the principal was ; but I think that he was not bound

to make such inquiry, and that by debiting the agent

with the price of the goods he had not precluded himself

from resorting to the principal, whose name was not

disclosed to him."

Соседние файлы в папке !!Экзамен зачет 2023 год