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Balfour VS Balfour

The Balfour vs Balfour case from 1919 established the concept of legal relationships in contract law. Mr. and Mrs. Balfour agreed that while on vacation in England, if Mrs. Balfour became ill and needed to stay, Mr. Balfour would pay her £30 per month until he returned. Later, their relationship deteriorated and Mr. Balfour stopped payments. The court ruled that for a contract to be valid, the parties must intend to create a legal relationship rather than a personal one. Since Mr. and Mrs. Balfour's agreement was domestic in nature, there was no valid contract, and Mr. Balfour had no obligation to continue payments. This case clarified

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63 views2 pages

Balfour VS Balfour

The Balfour vs Balfour case from 1919 established the concept of legal relationships in contract law. Mr. and Mrs. Balfour agreed that while on vacation in England, if Mrs. Balfour became ill and needed to stay, Mr. Balfour would pay her £30 per month until he returned. Later, their relationship deteriorated and Mr. Balfour stopped payments. The court ruled that for a contract to be valid, the parties must intend to create a legal relationship rather than a personal one. Since Mr. and Mrs. Balfour's agreement was domestic in nature, there was no valid contract, and Mr. Balfour had no obligation to continue payments. This case clarified

Uploaded by

Radhe Mohan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Balfour vs Balfour Case summary (1919) is a

snippet to understand the theory of legal


relationships easily. Balfour vs Balfour case gave
birth to the theory of legal relationship, which is
essential to forming a contract. The creation of
legal relations is important, without which a
contract cannot be formed.
FACTS OF BALFOUR v. BALFOUR CASE:

 Mr. Balfour and his wife went to England for vacation. During their
vacation, his wife became ill and needed medical attention for the
same.
 They made an agreement that Mrs. Balfour would remain in England
and that Mr. Balfour would go back to Ceylon and would pay £30 to her
every month until he returned.
 The particular agreement was made when their relationship was fine.
Later, their relationship got sour and her husband stopped sending her
money.
 Mrs. Balfour sought to enforce this agreement. Later, they both got
separated and were divorced.
 The wife sued Mr. Balfour that he had promised to pay her money but
failed to do so.
 The additional judge of King’s Bench held that Mr. Balfour was under
responsibility to support and pay his wife, and there is a firm agreement
between the two for which Mr. Balfour appealed.

ISSUES IN BALFOUR vs. BALFOUR CASE:

1. Was there an intention by Mr. Balfour to be legally bonded?


2. Is the contract between the wife and husband valid?

CONTENTIONS:

Plaintiff’s contention

The appellant argued it was a domestic agreement and not a legal


agreement. Mr. Balfour never intended to make a legal relationship and a
legal agreement between the two.

Defendant’s contention
The defendant argued that the wife is deemed to get £30 as the husband
entered a domestic contract by offering his wife to pay £30, to which his wife
agreed and stayed back in England.

RATIO DECIDENDI:

The judges present to hear this case were Justice Atkins, Justice Warrington,
and Justice Duke. Lord Justice Atkins held that contract law is not for personal
relationships and family. There was no intention to create a legal relationship,
thus there can be no legally binding contract. Atkins added if courts were to
allow wives when the contract is broken between the two, then courts would
be engaged with frivolous cases. The rest two justices agreed with Lord
Justice Atkins.

DECISION IN BALFOR CASE:

The appeal made by Mr. Balfour succeeded and the court ruled that there
was no legal relationship or any legal contract between the wife and husband.
If the parties intend to create a legal relationship can be decided by examining
the circumstances under which the contract was made and executed.
Therefore, Mr. Balfour was not legally bound to pay money to Mrs. Balfour.

CONCLUSION OF BALFOUR v BALFOUR CASE:

Studying and understanding the Balfour vs Balfour case cleared that social
agreements made between members of the family or other personal
relationships will not be enforced in a court of law. It also emphasized the
importance of creating legal relationships for a contract to be enforced. The
Balfour law gave a new perspective on contract validation.

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