USE TEXT A BELOW TO ANSWER THE QUESTION THAT FOLLOW, REMEMBER TO ADD AUTHORITY AS YOU ANSWER THE QUESTION.

Question

NB:YOU ARE A PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW STUDENT AND SUPPOSED TO ANSWER THIS QUESTIO.
TEXT A
Once it is determined that the dispute in question falls within the ambit of a choice of law rule, it is then a matter of determining which legal system is indicated by the connecting factor. This again appears relatively simple—where was the marriage celebrated? A simple question of fact—but it may be more difficult. Suppose, for example, that, having applied the choice of law rule, the connecting factor points to the applicability of the law of X; X’s law, however, also has choice of law rules, which use different connecting factors and, if those rules are applied, they direct that, say, the law of A, not the law of X, should be applied. Since X’s conflict rules, as we have seen, form part of the law of X, it appears prima facie that, if the local court’s conflict rules direct that the law of X be applied, X’s conflict rules too should apply, ie that, in fact, there should be onward reference to the law of A! This is the famed, perhaps notorious, conceptual question of renvoi. It too will be more fully discussed elsewhere. Moreover, it may be that the lex fori interprets the connecting factor in one way, and the lex causae in another. A South African court, for example, will consider a contract concluded where the letter accepting the offer is posted, but a German court will take the view that the contract is concluded where the letter is received. If the locus contractus of a contract concluded by posting a letter in South Africa accepting an offer made by a German offeror is the connecting factor in question, it is plain that that connecting factor will be differently interpreted by German and South African law. Since the connecting factor, however, is part of the local court’s choice of law rule it follows that the lex fori must be used in the determination of the connecting factor. It may be noted that this rule may well mean the law applicable to the contract in question will vary depending upon where a matter is litigated, thereby defeating, even at this early stage, a major purpose of private international law. Moreover, this cannot be an entirely infrangible rule because where nationality is used as a connecting factor the potential lex causae rather than the lex fori must be used.
QUESTION:
An offer was made by Jack from the Netherlands (Amsterdam) to Daniels, a South African from Gauteng. The offer was accepted and duly posted on the 20/04/2024. On the 21st of April 2024, Jack (the offeror) decided to withdraw his offer and phoned Daniels (the South African) to inform him accordingly. Daniels (the South African offeree) is convinced that a valid contract was concluded, because the place where the letter of acceptance was posted will determine the validity of the contract. Contrary to this, Jack (the offeror from the Netherlands) argues that the message to revoke reached Daniels (the offeree) long before he himself received the letter of acceptance – the contract, therefore, never came into existence. Fully advise Daniels on the solution available to him and the phenomenon shown by the facts.

Answer 1

According to the principles of private international law, the determination of which legal system applies to a contract is based on the connecting factor, which in this case is the place where the contract was concluded. In your case, the contract was concluded when the letter of acceptance was posted by Daniels in South Africa. However, as mentioned in the text, different legal systems may interpret this connecting factor differently.

In this scenario, South African law may consider the contract concluded upon posting the letter, while Dutch law may consider it concluded upon receipt of the letter. Since the connecting factor is part of the local court's choice of law rule, it follows that the lex fori (law of the forum) must be used to determine this factor.

Therefore, Daniels may have a valid argument that the contract was formed when the letter of acceptance was posted, according to South African law. It is essential to analyze both South African and Dutch conflict of law rules to determine which legal system is applicable in this case. It is important to seek legal counsel to assist with these complexities of private international law when dealing with cross-border contracts.