The Nature of Revocation of an Offer in Iranian, English, and American Law
Keywords:
Offer revocation, Reasonable reliance, English law, U.S. law, Contract lawAbstract
The issue of “revocation of an offer” constitutes one of the fundamental topics in contract law and is directly connected to the principle of freedom of will, the stability of transactions, and legal certainty. Adopting an analytical and comparative approach, the present study examines the permissibility, scope, and legal effects of revocation of an offer within three legal systems: Iran, England, and the United States of America. In Iranian law, the primary analytical foundations consist of the provisions of the Civil Code, relevant jurisprudential theories concerning unilateral juridical acts (īqāʿāt), bindingness and permissibility, as well as the views of prominent legal scholars. Within this system, the general rule is that revocation of an offer is permissible prior to acceptance, except in exceptional cases such as consideration-based offers, binding promises, or situations in which customary indications demonstrate the offeror’s commitment. In English law, the governing rules are derived from the common law and the principle that an offer remains dependent upon acceptance; accordingly, revocation is valid until acceptance is effected. Nevertheless, doctrines such as the option contract and the theory of legitimate reliance may, in certain circumstances, preclude revocation. American law reflects a broadly similar approach; however, the provisions of Section 2-205 of the Uniform Commercial Code and protective doctrines expand the scope of the offeror’s obligations. This study demonstrates that despite structural differences, all three legal systems recognize the principle of revocability of offers, while adopting divergent approaches in identifying exceptions and in protecting the legitimate reliance of the offeree.
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Copyright (c) 1402 Samad Shoorcheh (Author); Seyed Hossein Safaii; Nejad Ali Almasi (Author)
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