Discuss CIPS L4M3 Exam Topic 6 Question 23

SFO procurement manager sent a request for quotation to Vogon International in which he determined the contract terms and specification. In SFO's standard terms and conditions, it is stated that 'Goods shall be delivered and Services performed by the applicable Delivery Date. Supplier must notify Buyer 3 days prior to the Delivery Date if Supplier is likely to be unable to meet a Delivery Date.'

Vogon replied with a quotation without any amendment to SFO's terms & conditions. The SFO procurement manager found the prices were reasonable and submitted to senior management. Senior management team accepted that quotation and sent a notification to Vogon. On the Delivery Date, Vogon said they had no capacity to supply the product as the quotation due to a workers' strike. Did Vogon breach any agreement with SFO?

ANo, because Vogon had no intention to be bound by the quotation, therefore, it didn't constitute a contract

BNo, because the strike is a force majeur event, so Vogon did not breach any contract with SFO

CYes, because the contract was formed since Vogon had sent the quotation as an acceptance to SFO's offer

DYes, because the contract had been formed between SFO and Vogon with the quotation as an offer and the notification as an acceptance

Suggested Answer: D

SFO issued an RFQ with defined terms and condition and detailed specification. This RFQ can be considered as an invitation to treat. Vogon's quotation is an answer to the purchaser's RFQ and is an offer to SFO. The contract come to life at the time Vogon received the notification from SFO senior management.

The strike may be a force majeur event, depending on the contract particular clauses and jurisdiction. In common law countries, force majeur is applicable as an exclusion of liability only if the contract allows it. In many civil law countries, force majeur is an implied term. But in every jurisdiction, force majeur is only a reason for excluding liability for non-performance of a contract. In other words, the non-performance party is not liable for any breach if force majeur event occurs but the event does not exclude the breach.

LO 1, AC 1.2

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16 comments · newest first

Zona 11 months ago

Force majeure doesn’t always apply, but it’s tricky in this case.

Emeline 11 months ago

No way, they should have notified SFO about the strike earlier.

Raina 12 months ago

Wait, but what about the strike? Isn’t that a valid excuse?

Jin 12 months ago

I agree, a contract was definitely formed.

Nadine 1 year ago

Sounds like a clear breach to me. They accepted the terms!

Carline 1 year ago

I feel like Vogon might have breached the contract, especially since they didn't notify SFO about the strike in advance. That seems important.

Josphine 1 year ago

I practiced a similar question where a supplier failed to deliver, and it was determined that a contract was formed. So, I lean towards option C or D here.

Kris 1 year ago

I think the force majeure argument could be strong since strikes are often considered unforeseen events, but I’m not confident about how it applies to contracts.

Hubert 1 year ago

I remember discussing how a quotation can sometimes be seen as an acceptance, but I'm not entirely sure if that applies here.

Shenika 1 year ago

This is a good example of how the details can really matter in contract law. I'll make sure to read through the facts thoroughly and apply the relevant legal principles.

Lashandra 1 year ago

I'm leaning towards option C or D, since Vogon submitted a quotation without amending the terms. But I want to double-check the legal principles around offer and acceptance.

Rosendo 1 year ago

Okay, I think I've got it. The key is determining whether a valid contract was formed between SFO and Vogon. The terms and conditions seem important here.

Chantay 1 year ago

This question seems straightforward, but I want to make sure I understand the key details before answering.

Julio 1 year ago

Hmm, the wording about the "quotation" and "notification" is tripping me up a bit. I'll need to re-read that part carefully.

Wayne 1 year ago

I think this question is testing our understanding of how transactions and signatures work in the context of smart contracts. I'll need to carefully consider the role of the nonce and how that impacts the transaction signature.

Justine 1 year ago

Hmm, I'm a bit unsure about this one. I know vPC is used for high availability, but I'm not sure if it's configured on the Fabric Interconnect, Nexus switches, or something else in a FlexPod setup. I'll have to think this through carefully.

CIPS L4M3 Exam - Topic 6 Question 23 Discussion