Case brief summary
A promise to keep an offer open isn't binding unless the other person paid or gave something for it. If you learn the seller already sold to someone else, you can't accept the original offer.
Facts
Dodds offered to sell property to Dickinson, promising to hold the offer until Friday morning. He then sold it to Allan instead. Dickinson heard about this before accepting, but tried to accept anyway.
Procedural history
Dickinson sued to force Dodds to sell him the property and stop the sale to Allan. The trial judge ruled for Dickinson. Dodds and Allan appealed.
Issue
Was Dodds's signed document a binding agreement to sell, or just an offer that could be withdrawn, and could Dickinson still accept it after learning Dodds had already sold the property to someone else?
Holding
The Court of Appeal reversed the trial court, ruling that the document was only an offer, not a binding contract, and that Dickinson could not accept it once he knew Dodds had already sold the property to Allan.
Reasoning
The promise to keep the offer open wasn't binding since Dickinson gave nothing for it. Because Dickinson knew Dodds had already sold to someone else, there was no real agreement between them.
Opinions
Majority (James, L.J.): The document was only an offer, not a binding contract, and Dickinson could not accept it once he knew Dodds had sold the property to Allan.
Concurrences (Mellish, L.J. and Baggallay, J.A.): Agreed the offer was not binding to stay open, and that knowledge of the sale to Allan made later acceptance impossible.