新加坡规定合同法TheLawofContract新颖中英文版ACCA考生整理Word文档下载推荐.docx

1、新加坡的合同法基本上是以英国关于合同的普通法为范式而构建的。与它的邻居马来西亚和文莱不同的是，新加坡在1965年独立之后并没有试图编纂新加坡的合同法，因此新加坡的合同法仍保持判例法规则的模式。在某些情况下，判例法的规则已经被特定的成文法所修改。8.1.2 Many of these statutes are English in origin. To begin with, 13 English commercial statutes have been incorporated as part of the Statutes of the Republic of Singapore by v

2、irtue of s 4 of the Application of English Law Act （Cap 7A, 1993 Rev Ed）. These are listed in Part II of the First Schedule of this Act. Other statutes, eg the Contracts （Rights of Third Parties） Act （Cap 53B, 2002 Rev Ed）, are modelled upon（仿效） English statutes. There are also other areas where sta

3、tutory development based on non-English models has taken place, eg the Consumer Protection （Fair Trading） Act （Cap 52A, 2004 Rev Ed） （which was largely drawn from fair trading legislation enacted in Alberta and Sasketchewan）.许多此类立法起源于英国。首先来说，有13个英国商事法律根据英国法律适用法（Application of English Law Act） 第四节（Ca

4、p 7A, 1993年修订）的规定直接成为新加坡共和国的立法。这些立法罗列在该法的第二部分的第一附表里。其他立法，如合同第三方权利法（Contracts（ Rights of Third Parties） Act）（Cap 53B, 2002 修订），系模仿英国立法制定的。在某些领域也有立法采用非英国模式的情形，比如消费者保护（公平交易）法（Consumer Protection （Fair Trading） Act）（Cap 52A, 2004年修订）。该法大致上参照加拿大阿尔伯塔与萨卡其万两省的公平交易法制定。8.1.3The rules developed in the Singapor

5、e courts do, nevertheless, bear a very close resemblance to those developed under English common law. Indeed, where there is no Singapore authority specifically on point, it will usually be assumed that the position will, in the first instance, be no different from that in England.即使是新加坡的法庭本身所发展出的规则

6、也同英国普通法的同类规则有非常大的相似性。如果关于某个问题新加坡本身没有权威规则时，人们就会理所当然地首先假定新加坡的立场同英国法的立场没有什么区别.SECTION 2 OFFER AND ACCEPTANCE要约和承诺Agreement协议8.2.1A contract is essentially an agreement between two or more parties, the terms of which affect their respective rights and obligations which are enforceable at law. Whether th

7、e parties have reached agreement, or a meeting of the minds, is objectively ascertained from the facts. The concepts of offer and acceptance provide in many, albeit not all, cases the starting point for analysing whether agreement has been reached.合同在本质上是双方或者多方之间的协议，该协议条款涉及到当事人各自的权利义务并且具有法律约束力。至于当事人

8、之间是否达成协议，或合意（consensus ad idem）, 应通过对事实的客观分析而确定。在大多数但并非所有的情况下，要约与承诺的概念是分析当事人是否达成协议的起点。Offer要约8.2.2An offer is a promise, or other expression of willingness, by the offeror to be bound on certain specified terms upon the unqualified acceptance of these terms by the person to whom the offer is made （t

9、he offeree）. Provided the other formation elements （ie consideration and intention to create legal relations） are present, the acceptance of an offer results in a valid contract.一个要约即是“要约人”发出的一项允诺或其他形式的自愿意思表示，表明经“受要约人”无条件承诺某些确定的条款，“要约人”即受这些条款的约束。如合同成立的其他要素亦得满足（如对价和设立法律关系的意旨），对要约的承诺会导致一个有效的合同。8.2.3Wh

10、ether any particular statement amounts to an offer depends on the intention with which it is made. An offer must be made with the intention to be bound. On the other hand, if a person is merely soliciting offers or requesting for information, without any intention to be bound, at best, he or she wou

11、ld be making an invitation to treat. Under the objective test, a person may be said to have made an offer if his or her statement （or conduct） induces a reasonable person to believe that the person making the offer intends to be bound by the acceptance of the alleged offer, even if that person in fa

12、ct had no such intention.一个特定的表述是否构成要约有赖于表述的意旨。要约必须具有受拘束的意旨。如果某人只是引诱他人作出要约，或者只是询问情况，而并没有受拘束的意旨，那他或她最多只是在作出要约邀请。按照客观标准，如果某人的表述（或者行为）致使一个通情达理的人相信发出要约者具有在该要约被承诺后接受拘束的意旨，则即使该人实际上没有此种意旨，他也被认为是发出了一项要约。Termination of Offer要约终止8.2.4An offer may be terminated by withdrawal at any time prior to its acceptance

13、, provided there is communication, of the withdrawal to the offeree, whether by the offeror or through some reliable source. Rejection of an offer, which includes the making of a counter-offer or a variation of the original terms, terminates the offer. In the absence of an express stipulation as to

14、time, an offer will lapse after a reasonable time. What this amounts to depends on the particular facts of the case. Death of the offeror, if known to the offeree, would render the offer incapable of being accepted by the offeree. Even in the absence of such knowledge, death of either party terminat

15、es any offer which has a personal element.要约在承诺之前的任何时候都可以撤回，只要由要约人亲自或者通过其他可信的渠道向受要约人发出撤回通知。对要约的拒绝导致要约失效，这包括发出反要约或者改变原要约的条款。如要约对时效没有明确规定，则该要约在合理时间之后失效。这种情况到底何所指，这要根据案件的具体事实来分析。如果要约人死亡且此事实已为受要约人知晓，则要约就不能够被后者接受。任何一方死亡的事实，即使不为他方知晓，也会导致任何具有人身因素的要约消灭。Acceptance承诺8.2.5An offer is accepted by the unconditio

16、nal and unqualified assent to its terms by the offeree. This assent may be expressed through words or conduct, but cannot be inferred from mere silence save in very exceptional circumstances.受要约人对要约条款无条件和无保留的同意构成对要约的承诺。同意可由言语或行为来表示，但除非在极其例外的情况下，缄默不能被认为是同意。8.2.6As a general rule, acceptance must be c

17、ommunicated to the offeror, although a limited exception exists where the acceptance is sent by post and this method of communication is either expressly or impliedly authorised. This exception, known as the postal acceptance rule, stipulates that acceptance takes place at the point when the letter

18、of acceptance is posted, whether or not it was in fact received by the offeror.一个总的原则是承诺应该被通知到要约人，但如果承诺是通过邮寄方式且此种方式被认为是或者明确或者默示地许可的，则构成一项例外。这个例外被称为“投邮承诺规则”，它规定承诺信一经付邮，无论要约人是否实际上收到，承诺均告生效。Certainty确定性8.2.7Before the agreement may be enforced as a contract, its terms must be sufficiently certain. At t

19、he least, the essential terms of the agreement should be specified. Beyond this, the courts may resolve apparent vagueness or uncertainty by reference to the acts of the parties, a previous course of dealing between the parties, trade practice or to a standard of reasonableness. On occasion, statuto

20、ry provision of contractual details may fill the gaps. For more on implication of terms, seeParagraphs 8.5.5to8.5.8below.在协议被作为合同执行以前，它的条款必须足够确定。至少，协议的关键条款应予明确规定。在此之外，法庭可以通过诉诸当事方的行为、当事方之间已有的习惯作法、贸易惯例或者合理标准来解决协议条款含糊不清或不确定的问题。某些情况下，关于合同细节的成文法规定也可以用来填补协议条款的空白。关于条款的问题，可进一步参见第8.5.5节和8.5.8节。Completeness完整

21、性8.2.8An incomplete agreement also cannot amount to an enforceable contract. Agreements made subject to contract may be considered incomplete if the intention of the parties, as determined from the facts, was not to be legally bound until the execution of a formal document or until further agreement

22、 is reached.不完整的协议不能构成具有执行力的合同。如果协议规定“以合同为准”，且由事实可推断出的当事方的意旨表明在正式合同或者进一步的协议达成之前，当事方无意受到法律拘束，则该协议为不完整的协议。Electronic Transactions Act电子交易8.2.9The Electronic Transactions Act （Cap 88, 1999 Rev Ed） （ETA） clarifies that, except with respect to the requirement of writing or signatures in wills, negotiable

23、 instruments, indentures, declarations of trust or powers of attorney, contracts involving immovable property and documents of title （s 4（1）, electronic records may be used in expressing an offer or acceptance of an offer in contract formation （s 11）. A declaration of intent between contracting part

24、ies may also be made in the form of an electronic record （s 12）. The ETA also clarifies when an electronic record may be attributed to a particular person （s 13） and how the time and place of despatch and receipt of an electronic record are to be determined （s 15）.电子交易法（Cap 88, 1999年修正）阐明，电子记录可用来在合同

25、订立过程中表述要约或者对要约的承诺（见第11条），但是这不适用于对遗嘱、流通票据、债券、委托声明或授权书、不动产合同以及所有权凭证（见第4（11）条）等文件的书面或签字要求。SECTION 3 CONSIDERATION 对价Definition定义8.3.1A promise contained in an agreement is not enforceable unless it is supported by consideration or it is made in a written document made under seal. Consideration is somet

26、hing of value （as defined by the law）, requested for by the party making the promise （the promisor） and provided by the party who receives it （the promisee）, in exchange for the promise that the promisee is seeking to enforce. Thus, it could consist of either some benefit received by the promisor, o

27、r some detriment to the promisee. This benefit/detriment may consist of a counter promise or a completed act.一项允诺，如果不为对价支持或者不由书面盖印作出，则不具法律执行力。对价是（法律界定的）某种价值，为提出允诺的一方（“允诺人”）所要求，并由接受允诺的一方（“受允诺人”）所提供以用来交换对前项允诺的执行。故此，它可以是允诺人收到的某种利益，或者受允诺人承受的某种损害。这种利益/损害可以表现为对待允诺或者已完成的行为。Reciprocity互惠8.3.2The idea of rec

28、iprocity that underlies the requirement for consideration means that there has to be some causal relation between the consideration and the promise itself. Thus, consideration cannot consist of something that was already done before the promise was made. However, the courts do not always adopt a str

29、ict chronological approach to the analysis.体现于对价要求之中的是互惠关系这一原则，它要求对价和允诺之间有某种原因关系。因此，对价不能是允诺作出之前已经完成的事情。但是，法院并不总是严格地忠实于这种以时间先后为准的推论方式参见Pao On v Lau Yiu Long 1980 AC 614, 该判例所确立的原则已经被新加坡上诉法院在Sim Tony v Lim Ah Ghee t/a Phil Real Estate & Building Services （1995 2 SLR 466） 一案中明确采用.Sufficiency充足8.3.3Whet

30、her the consideration provided is sufficient is a question of law, and the court is not, as a general rule, concerned with whether the value of the consideration is commensurate with the value of the promise. The performance of, or the promise to perform, an existing public duty imposed on the promisee does not, without more, constitute sufficient consideration in law to support the promisors promise. The performance of an existing obligation that is owed contractually to the promisor is capable of being sufficient consideration, if such performance c