Dear Students,

Please see below the second assessment for the commercial law module.

This assessment is worth 60% of your overall module grade. The due date for the assessment is Wednesday 17th April 2024 at 12pm (midday).

There are three parts to this assessment. You must answer all three. Each part carries an equal weight. Page limit at least 8 pages excluding bibliography.

Q1) Natalie is organising her best friends bridal shower and contacts Party Supplies Ltd in Watford. Mandy, the owner of Party Supplies Ltd, agrees to supply Natalie with 20 gold leaf plates on sale or return and 10 ‘Team Bride’ sashes. Mandy advised Natalie that any unused plates and sashes would need to be returned by 10th May.

The bridal shower took place on 04th May. Natalie used 12 of the gold leaf plates and 6 of the ‘Team Bride’ sashes.

Natalie’s friend Sarah is getting married next month, and she asked if she could use the remaining plates for her wedding. Natalie agreed and dropped them off to her the next day. Sarah gave her £10 towards the costs and promises she would pay the rest before her wedding. On 07th May, Sarah phones Natalie informing her that her wedding has been cancelled as her fiancée lost his job and he would not be able to pay for the wedding. She no longer needs the plates.

On the bridal shower, 6 sashes were used of which four were torn by Natalie and her friends while dancing. The remaining 4 were set aside to give to charity however, Natalie did not get round to doing so.  

On 09th May, Natalie contacted Mandy and informed her that she would like to return all 20 of the gold leaf plates and 10 sashes.

Today is 12th May and Natalie has not returned the goods. Mandy sends her an invoice for 20 gold leaf plates and 10 ‘Team Bride’ sashes.

Advise Natalie if property has passed to her in any of the goods.

Q2) Daphne owns a luxury handbag store in Southampton, Nermes. Last week, a customer visited her store and asked to purchase the latest Nermes Dirkin bag, retailing at £40,000. The customer had a striking resemblance to Liam Densworth, a well-known celebrity.

The customer showed Daphne his Paramount Pictures pass with the name Liam Densworth and address and signed an autograph for her before selecting the Nermes Dirkin bag.

Initially Daphne was sceptical to allow him to take the bag however, the customer assured her that he would pay a £10,000 deposit and the rest through bank transfer. Daphne agreed and the customer wrote out a cheque.

The next day, Daphne went to the bank to deposit the cheque however, it was rejected. Confused, Daphne called the customer however, his phone was switched off. Daphne then went to her local police station and reported the theft.

Meanwhile, Sam, a keen collector of luxury handbags, met the customer in Bedford at the gym. While talking, the customer mentioned that he had the latest Nermes Dirkin bag for sale and that he wanted to get rid of it as soon as possible. When Sam saw the bag, she was delighted to see it was an original and purchased it for the asking price of £5000.

After an extensive investigation, the police manage to track the bag to Sam, after she posted it online. Sam refuses to return the bag as she claims she paid ‘good money’ for it.

Advise Daphne whether she can trace title in the goods.

Q3)  Critically discuss the mercantile agency exception to the nemo dat rule with reference to legislation, case law and other relevant sources.

The page limit is at least 8 pages, excluding the bibliography, 1.5 or double-line spaced.

The recommended font is Ariel, font size 11 or 12.

You should submit your answer as a Word document.

You should cite your sources using the OSCOLA referencing system.