Caveat Emptor free essay sample

Caveat emptor is Latin for Let the buyer beware (from caveat, may he beware, the subjunctive of cavere, to beware + emptor, buyer). Generally, caveat emptor is the property law principle that controls the sale of real property after the date of closing, but may also apply to sales of other goods. Under the principle of caveat emptor, the buyer could not recover damages from the seller for defects on the property that rendered the property unfit for ordinary purposes. The only exception was if the seller actively concealed latent defects or otherwise made material misrepresentations amounting to fraud.Before statutory law, the buyer had no express warranty ensuring the quality of goods. Common law requires that goods must be fit for the particular purpose and of merchantable quality, but this implied warranty can be difficult to enforce and may not apply to all products. Hence, buyers are still advised to be cautious. We will write a custom essay sample on Caveat Emptor or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 1 Definition of Caveat Emptor A Latin phrase for let the buyer beware. The term is primarily used in real property transactions. Essentially it proclaims that the buyer must perform their due diligence when purchasing an item or service.Investopedia explains Caveat Emptor In other words, consumers need to know their rights and be vigilant in avoiding scams. For example in the private purchase of a used car, caveat emptor places an onus on the buyer to make sure the car is worth the purchase price. This is because once the transaction is complete the buyer will not receive a warranty or return option from the seller. As per Advanced Law Lexicon by P. Ramanatha Aiyar, 3rd Edition. 2005 at page 721: Caveat emptor means Let the purchaser beware. It is one of the settled maxims, applying to a purchaser who is bound by actual as well as constructive knowledge of any defect in the thing purchased, which is obvious, or which might have been known by proper diligence. This maxim is used with reference to sale or sales of the properties where the buyer is expected to exercise proper diligence and to inform himself as to its quality and encumbrances. Caveat emptor does not mean either in law or in Latin that the buyer must take chances. It means that the buyer must take care. See Wallis v. Russell [1902] 2 IR 585. 1. ttp://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Caveat_emptor Caveat emptor  is the ordinary rule in contract. A vendor is under no duty to communicate the existence even of latent defects in his wares unless by act or implication he represents such defects not to exist. (See William R. Anson, Principles of the Law of Contract 245 (Arthur L. Corbin Ed. 3d. Am. ed. 1919) Applying the maxim, it was held that it is the bounden duty of the purchaser to make all such necessary enquiries and to ascertain all the facts relating to the property to be purchased prior to committing in any manner. Caveat emptor, qui ignorare non debuit quod jus alienum emit. A. maxim meaning Let a purchaser beware; who ought not to be ignorant that he is purchasing the rights of another. Hob. 99; Broom; Co. , Litl: 102 a: 3 Taunt. 439. As the maxim applies, with certain specific restrictions, not only to the quality of, but also to the title to, land which is sold, the purchaser is generally bound to view the land and to enquire after and inspect the title-deeds; at his peril if he does not.Upon a sale of goods the general rule with regard to their nature or quality is caveat emptor, so that in the absence of fraud, the buyer has no remedy against the seller for any defect in the goods not covered by some condition or warranty, expressed or implied. It is beyond all doubt that, by the general rules of law there is no warranty of quality arising from the bare contract of sale of goods, and that where there has been no fraud, a buyer who has not obtained an express warranty, takes all risk of defect in the goods, unless there are circumstances beyond the mere fact of sale from which a warranty may be implied.Bottomley v. Bannister(1932) 101 L. J. K. B. 46; Ward v. Hobbs 4 App Cas 13. (Latin for Lawyers) No one ought in ignorance to buy that which is the right of another. The buyer according to the maxim has to be cautious, as the risk is his and not that of the seller. 1 1. http://www. lawyersclubindia. com/articles/Rule-of-Caveat-Emptor-5399. asp#. UZpgLKL-Hmp Caveat Emptor is a common-law maxim that serves as a warning to the buyer of any property, real or personal, that he assumes the risk that the product he is buying might be either defective or unsuitable to his needs.Simply put, it imposes obligation upon the buyer of a property to examine and check for themselves the things that they intend to purchase. In case they comply with this obligation, they cannot later on hold the vendor responsible for the defective or broken condition of the thing bought. It must however be stressed that the doctrine of caveat emptor is not designed to encourage the vendors to engage in fraud or bad faith in dealing with buyers. It only seeks to stress that the buyer has the obligation to examine, judge and double-check the product before it is purchased. In essence, it serves as a guide for the courts to determine whether the vendor or the purchaser should be held responsible for the damaged or defective goods. For instance in the sale of motor vehicle, it is presumed that before the buyer has delivered the purchase price to the vendor, the buyer has examined the motor vehicle and that he is satisfied of its present condition.It is also presumed that the buyer is purchasing the property at the same condition it was bought. The buyer cannot be heard to complain later on and ask for the recovery of the purchase price in case he subsequently finds out that the motor vehicle’s brakes are defective. In the sale of land, it is also presumed that the buyer buys the real property at its present state and condition. In the absence of an express provision in the contract or fraud the buyer is deemed to have pu rchased the land together with its defects. Defects involving land may either be patent, or those that that are obvious, or latent, those that are hidden from view. The doctrine of Caveat Emptor applies only to patent defects. This means that the buyer of a real property is under obligation for his own protection to examine the real property for any obvious defects. Such is the duty of the buyer since the vendor is under no obligation, in the absence of an express provision in the agreement or fraud, to communicate to the buyer any patent defects relative to the acquisition of the land.For instance, the buyer has purchased a house and lot. After full payment of the purchase price, the purchaser cannot be heard to complain and seek to recover damages from the vendor on the ground that the house is made of weak materials or the roof is defective or the tiles composing the floor of the house is damaged since it is presumed that the buyer has examined the property he is buying. It is presumed that he has checked the house and lot for any obvious defects.