CLA1501 May/Jun 2010 exam paper — questions
Free sample
Question 1 · Sources of South African law · 2 marks
A South African lawyer needs to consult a source on Roman-Dutch law. Which ONE of the following would be that source?Show the full question
Question 2 · Sources of South African law · 2 marks
Identify which ONE of the following constitutes the supreme law of South Africa.Show the full question
Question 3 · Sources of South African law · 2 marks
One particular officer of the High Court is tasked with issuing process, enrolling cases, keeping records and issuing court orders. Which ONE of the following officers performs this role?Show the full question
Question 4 · Sources of South African law · 2 marks
Select the ONE CORRECT statement from the following options concerning legal terminology used in judgments.Show the full question
Question 5 · Classification of rights · 2 marks
Gunther, a well-known inventor of environmentally friendly cars, stands in his ultra-modern workshop admiring the revolutionary electrically powered car he invented for the company Green Cars, which still owes him R5 000 000. This scenario contains four legal objects, one representing each of the four categories of Gunther's subjective rights. Which ONE of the following best describes the nature of the R5 000 000 owed to Gunther?Show the full question
Question 6 · Property, ownership and possession · 2 marks
Liam finds a cellphone that someone else has discarded and keeps it for himself, thereby becoming its owner. Through which ONE of the following original methods did Liam acquire ownership of the cellphone?Show the full question
Question 7 · Property, ownership and possession · 2 marks
Senzo drafts a will leaving his house to his daughter, Sibongile. The will stipulates that Sibongile may not sell the house while her mother, Lebo, is still alive, since Lebo is entitled to occupy the house until her death — a limited right to use and enjoy the property. Which ONE of the following limited rights does Lebo hold in this situation?Show the full question
Question 8 · Classification of rights · 2 marks
Sandra visits Dr Visage, a plastic surgeon, regarding a face lift and signs a consent form for the procedure. After waking from surgery she discovers it was unsuccessful, and later learns that Dr Visage did not perform the operation himself but that a nurse carried it out on his behalf. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 9 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Determine in which ONE of the following four scenarios a VALID contract was concluded: (1) Lauren hires a professional caterer to provide food for a party with ten invited guests; thirty minutes after the agreed time, five guests phone to say they will miss the party, and Lauren wants to sue those guests for breach of contract. (2) John, extremely drunk, promises in front of witnesses at Papa's Bar to give Alex one of his cars in exchange for Alex fixing his house's broken windows; moments later John collapses in the street and the next morning remembers nothing of the agreement. (3) The organisers of the Rhino 2008 Rally offer Rex R20 000 if he can drive the 500 kilometres between Johannesburg and Bloemfontein within an hour, and Rex accepts the offer. (4) Peter and Andrew agree that Peter will hand over R100 to Andrew, and Andrew will hand over his silver pen to Peter, in full exchange.Show the full question
Question 10 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Stephen and Morris concluded an oral contract. Stephen believed they had agreed on a contract of sale for a motor vehicle, while Morris believed they had concluded a contract of lease for the vehicle. Stephen now seeks your advice on the validity of the contract. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 11 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Shaun, a B Com student at Unisa, spots a beautiful girl named Sandy in the examination hall during a test and immediately falls for her. He introduces himself and invites her to the movies. They arrange to meet the next Friday at 6 o'clock in front of Sterland. Shaun arrives on time, but Sandy does not appear. After waiting over two hours, he goes home and consults his Commercial Law textbook to determine whether he can sue Sandy for not honouring their appointment. He later learns that Sandy's car broke down on the way to Sterland. Which ONE of the options below correctly completes the sentence: Shaun's appointment with Sandy was NOT a contract because ___.Show the full question
Question 12 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Select the ONE option that correctly completes the following sentence about contract formation: in terms of the dispatch theory, a contract comes into being at the place where, and the time when, ...Show the full question
Question 13 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Which ONE of the following statements concerning mistake and consensus in contract law is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 14 · Legal subjects, status and capacity · 2 marks
Ben, a general dealer, needs to appoint a sales person and to replace his delivery van with a bigger vehicle. If he finds both a buyer for the van and a suitable applicant, he will conclude two contracts: a contract of sale for the old vehicle and a contract of employment with the applicant. Which ONE of the following persons does NOT have the full capacity to conclude both of these contracts with Ben: Emma, aged twenty, married out of community of property to Dan for the past two years; Noel, whose estate was sequestrated after losing a fortune in a shady business deal and who has not yet been rehabilitated; Ace, married in community of property to Jane; or Andrew, aged nineteen, whose parents left him behind in South Africa when they immigrated to America, given that he has his own job and flat?Show the full question
Question 15 · Legal subjects, status and capacity · 2 marks
Penny and Mike are married in community of property. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT regarding a farm that Penny's grandfather bequeaths to her with the express condition that it be excluded from the joint estate?Show the full question
Question 16 · Legal subjects, status and capacity · 2 marks
Alice, seventeen years old and living with her parents, concludes a written contract to buy a flat from Benni, a 35-year-old man, for R80 000, intending to use money received as a gift from her uncle to pay the purchase price. Which ONE of the following statements about this contract is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 17 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Joe owes Jack R60 000. They agree that Jack will cancel 20% of the debt if Joe agrees to sponsor Jack's visit to the LA Lisa brothel. Which ONE of the following statements about this agreement is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 18 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Ted and Robyn, who are engaged, include a clause in their antenuptial contract in terms of which Ted makes Robyn his heir. Which ONE of the following statements regarding this agreement between Ted and Robyn is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 19 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Gretchen, who works at the local Traffic Department, illegally sells driver's licences to the public. Nick pays her the agreed R500 cash price, but Gretchen subsequently refuses to deliver a driver's licence to him. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 20 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Which ONE of the following four statements about contracts is CORRECT: Ken, an ardent believer in freedom of conscience, movement and speech, agrees with Tom to erect a facility to teach safe sex to, and allow practice by, primary school pupils; Lourens, who sells sugar cane at R20 a bale and has delivered only three of the fifteen bales ordered by Donovan, wants to demand payment for the three delivered bales; Paul buys an aeroplane from Inge and pays cash, and at first Inge only needs to deliver the wings of the aeroplane; or Sheila, desperate for money to start a supermarket business, wants to sell a ten-square-kilometre area of the Atlantic Ocean to a developer to promote tourism?Show the full question
Question 21 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Select the ONE option that correctly completes the following statement: compliance with formalities is a requirement for the validity of ___.Show the full question
Question 22 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Jane takes her friends Judith and Stella to a restaurant. When it is time to pay, Jane discovers she does not have her purse with her. Judith agrees to pay the bill but suspects Jane will not repay her, so Judith asks Stella whether she will bind herself as surety for Jane's debt. Stella agrees by nodding her head. Which ONE of the following statements regarding the validity of the agreement between Stella and Judith is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 23 · Formation of a contract: offer and acceptance · 2 marks
Neil and Kate decide to start a retail business together. They have already discussed and agreed on their respective duties and how profits will be divided. They decide that Kate will write down everything they agreed on and provide each of them with a copy of the contract. However, just as Kate starts writing, Neil changes his mind and tells Kate he no longer wants to be involved in the business. Which ONE of the following statements regarding the validity of the agreement between Neil and Kate is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 24 · Contractual terms, conditions and warranties · 2 marks
Stanley makes a written offer to buy Fanie's house on condition that Stanley obtains a loan of R500 000 from Regular Bank within three weeks. Fanie accepts Stanley's offer. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 25 · Contractual terms, conditions and warranties · 2 marks
Clarence wants to purchase a stand from June only if the beach is visible from the stand. June is not sure whether the beach is visible, so they agree that Clarence will purchase the stand if the beach is indeed visible from it. What is such a contractual term called?Show the full question
Question 26 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
Priscilla and Daphne enter into an agreement in terms of which Priscilla undertakes to design and plant a new garden for Daphne by no later than 31 October 2009. A penalty clause requires Priscilla to pay Daphne R100 for each day the garden make-over is delayed beyond the agreed completion date. Priscilla is twenty days late, completing the garden only on 20 November 2009. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 27 · Contractual terms, conditions and warranties · 2 marks
Under what circumstances will a court apply the guideline of interpreting a contractual clause against the interest of the party who formulated that clause?Show the full question
Question 28 · Contractual terms, conditions and warranties · 2 marks
Thabo and Tshepo conclude a written contract of loan. During their initial discussions, the intention was that the loan would only be repayable after three years. However, the written document expressly provides for immediate repayment if Thabo requests it. Believing that Thabo will never invoke this term, Tshepo signs the contract. Two months later, Thabo calls up the loan with immediate effect. Which ONE of the following statements reflects the CORRECT legal position?Show the full question
Question 29 · Contractual terms, conditions and warranties · 2 marks
Which ONE of the following is NOT a recognised guideline for the interpretation of contracts?Show the full question
Question 30 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
Ted and Marshall enter into a contract in terms of which Marshall must deliver a dozen bottles of export wine to Ted, who has already paid the purchase price. Marshall now indicates that he does not intend to perform in terms of the contract. Which ONE of the following types of breach of contract has Marshall committed?Show the full question
Question 31 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
Leon, who owns a seafood shop, buys fresh fish from Seasong Fisheries. They agree that Seasong will deliver the fish to Leon's shop on 16 April. On that date, Leon forgets about the scheduled delivery and closes his shop for the day to attend a funeral in a nearby town. When Seasong arrives at Leon's shop with the fish, the doors are locked and there is nobody to receive it. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 32 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
A debtor commits breach of contract in the form of default (mora debitoris) under which ONE of the following circumstances?Show the full question
Question 33 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
When a debtor does something that he or she is not permitted to do in terms of the agreement, this constitutes breach of contract in the form of ___.Show the full question
Question 34 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
Identify which ONE of the following remedies constitutes an order for execution of the contract.Show the full question
Question 35 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
In which ONE of the following instances will damages be claimed according to the innocent party's positive interest?Show the full question
Question 36 · Breach of contract and remedies · 2 marks
The Maroon Baboon is a television character extremely popular with young children. Janet, who owns a toy shop, orders fifty Maroon Baboon outfits from Fantasy Clothing at R50 per suit, with delivery agreed for 15 November; Janet plans to resell the suits at R120 each. At least one hundred customers express interest in buying suits for their children as Christmas gifts, but Janet cannot supply them because the suits are only delivered on 15 January. The late delivery occurred because Fantasy Clothing took on more orders than it could handle. By this time, Edmund the Weasel has replaced the Maroon Baboon as television's favourite children's character, and the market for Maroon Baboon suits has diminished considerably. Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 37 · Termination of obligations · 2 marks
Which ONE of the following statements regarding novation is CORRECT?Show the full question
Question 38 · Termination of obligations · 2 marks
Leo borrows R20 000 from Belinda, agreeing to repay it in two instalments over the following two months. At the end of the first month Leo pays Belinda R5 000, and during the second month he pays her only R4 000. When Belinda queries the outstanding amount, Leo insists he owed her only R9 000, not R20 000. They eventually reach agreement that Leo will pay her R10 000. This is an illustration of ___.Show the full question
Question 39 · Prescription · 2 marks
What is the usual period of prescription in respect of a debt arising from a bill of exchange or other negotiable instrument?Show the full question
Question 40 · Prescription · 2 marks
Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT: if Baxter borrows R4 000 from Edgar on 1 December and they agree that Baxter will repay the money on 30 December, prescription regarding the debt begins to run on 1 December; Baxter may cede a third of what Enos owes him to Barney without Enos's consent; Baxter owes Power Bank a total of R200 000 in respect of various transactions, deposits R50 000 with the bank without stipulating how the payment must be allocated, and the bank is obliged to apply the whole sum towards reducing the capital on Baxter's home loan; or Baxter (Pty) Ltd's debt of R40 000 owed to Big Construction Co (Pty) Ltd is extinguished when the two companies merge?Show the full question