The Gazette 1995

GAZETTE

DECEMBER 1995

Maritime Inc.

and

Express and Star

Limited v Bunday

are quoted and

could be of considerable use in an

Irish context.

Part II consists of three chapters on

common law rights. Two of these

chapters deal with wrongful dismissal

and are helpful given the parallel

between the two common law

jurisdictions. The third chapter is

entitled "Dismissals governed by

public law" and consists of a useful

summary of the UK law of Judicial

Review.

Part III consists of two chapters on

procedural considerations the first of

which must be avoided by Irish

lawyers as it relates solely to UK

statutes. The second chapter on

insolvency of an employer is of

limited use.

The fourth and final part of the book

relates to problems after termination

dealing in the main with restrictive

covenants in contracts of employment.

As restrictive covenants in Ireland

have been significantly affected by the

provisions of the Competition Act this

chapter is also of limited value. Prof.

Upex is to be congratulated on a job

well done. His book, however, can

only be recommended to Irish

practitioners where they already have

a detailed knowledge of the subject

matter.

Gary Byrne

The Theft Acts

by Edward Griew; 7th Edition;

published by Sweet and Maxwell;

price: £21.95.

It is five years since the last edition of

this book and it will be a welcome

complement to students and

practitioners interested in this area of

the law. It contains a re-written

chapter on appropriation in theft and

considers the provisions for enlarging

jurisdiction of courts in England and

Wales.

While its content is limited to the law I

of England and Wales it brings the

362

reader right up to date taking account,

as it does, of the UK Criminal Justice

Act 1993.

Justin McKenna

"The Law of Cont rac t"

By Raymond J Friel. Published by

the Roundhall Press 1995; 345pp;

paperback: £29.95; hardback:

£47.50.

"The big print giveth and the small

print taketh away "

So commented an anonymous

clergyman many years ago. Contract

has been a fruitful source of legal

comment, discussion and writing

down through the ages. Because of the

massive volumes on the subject the

need for small print seemed to

become ever more important. In

recent years this outlook may have

changed and the recent European

Directive on Unfair Contract Terms

illustrates the changing complexion of

contract law Although the author

refers to the role this directive will

play in the application of exclusion

clauses in the future he does not

elaborate.

Mr Friel begins in his preface by

stating the obvious. The area of

contract law is already well served by

major legal writers both here and in

England. What makes this book any

different? To begin with, he gives us

an exceptionally readable book.

Tomes on contract law usually giveth

copious quantities of small print. By

his use of footnotes and careful

reference to cases and statutes he

has succeeded in giving us an

uncluttered text.

Most of the major works in contract

have a long tradition. This longevity

the author tells us has led to an

evolution of analysis rather than a

revolution. The book attempts to

advance new approaches to old

problems. To achieve this the text

assumes that English law does not

operate as a precedent in this

i jurisdiction. Therefore, examples are

taken from other common law

jurisdictions, in particular the United

States, Australia and Canada. He often

makes extensive reference to the

I Restatement of the Law, Second,

Contracts.

A restatement is a general

| statement of legal principle in a given

j field of law, drawn up by members of

the legal profession in the US using

| existing case law but advocating

[ reform where necessary. It is not

| binding in any court, but it has been

instrumental in the development of US

Law. Further extensive use is made of

I the Uniform Commercial Code as a

! commentary of the law in the US.

I These sources are used to advance the

debate on the general reform of

| contract. Mr Friel asks us to look

upon the scope of contract as a field

of analysis. He explains that the

contracts concerning the relationship

of employer/employee are not dealt

with to any great extent for a number

of reasons which effectively preclude

their use as analogous logic for

j extrapolating general principles in

contract law.

j Generous reference is given to sources

of material including the works of

other authors on the Irish law of

contract. Wide use of case references

, is exemplified by reference to the

judgment of

Carroll J

in the 1991, in

I the unreported case of

Parkgrange

Investments

Shandon Park Mills

on the topic of offer and acceptance

and the 1984 case of

Tradax (Ireland)

Limited v Irish Grain Board Limited

on the issue of what constitutes a

note or memorandum for the purposes

of the Statute of Frauds and whether

| acceptance of part of the goods is

sufficient to form a contract.

| If the book succeeds as a vehicle for

reform then we must await the

I analysis of future judgments where

obiter dicta

will be borrowed from

these covers. Legislation in Ireland in

this area will be determined by policy

decisions made in Brussels. As for

practitioners it may be dangerous to

rely solely on some of the

pronouncements contained in the

book. As an example I refer to a short

| piece under the title

"Subject to

contract".

The succinct style of the

author does not enable him to give