Free consent (ss. 13-16, 19, 19A): consent, coercion and undue influence
LUG-103 Law of Contract including Specific Relief Act & Sale of Goods Act, Unit II: Coercion, undue influence, misrepresentation, fraud and mistake. · LLB · 60 min
This lecture opens Unit II with the idea of consent (s. 13) and free consent (s. 14), covering topics 0 and 1 of the unit, and then works through the first two vitiating factors: coercion (s. 15) and undue influence (s. 16), with their effect under ss. 19 and 19A. Every paper from 2017-18 to 2025-26 has asked at least one question on this ground - "define consent", "what is coercion", "distinguish coercion and undue influence", "explain free consent and its elements" - so the definitions, the Act's illustrations and the leading cases (Chikkam Ammiraju, Ranganayakamma, Raghunath Prasad, Mannu Singh, Lakshmi Amma) must be at your fingertips.
Objectives
- Explain consent and free consent under ss. 13 and 14 and the 'but for' test of causation.
- Define coercion under s. 15, identify its ingredients and apply it to threats of suicide, detention of property and threats of prosecution.
- Define undue influence under s. 16, state the three-stage inquiry and the circumstances in which the burden of proof shifts.
- Distinguish coercion from undue influence, and coercion from English duress.
- State the effect of coercion and undue influence on the contract under ss. 19 and 19A, including restitution.
Slides
- Consent and free consent: ss. 13 and 14
- Why it matters: the map of the five vitiating factors
- Coercion: the text of s. 15 and its ingredients
- Coercion in the cases: suicide, the corpse, prosecution
- Coercion compared with English duress; burden and remedy
- Undue influence: s. 16(1) and (2) and the Act's illustrations
- Burden of proof: s. 16(3) and the three stages (Raghunath Prasad)
- Undue influence in the cases: guru, grandfather, hospital bed
- Unconscionable bargains, unequal bargaining power and s. 23
- Effects (ss. 19, 19A, 64) and coercion v undue influence
- How the examiner asks it
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