MISTAKE

"Consent" defined.

13."Consent" defined.-
Two or more persons
are said to consent
when they agree
upon the same thing
in the same sense.
20.Agreement void where both parties
are under mistake as to
matter of fact.

Where both the parties to an agreement

are under a mistake as to
a matter of fact essential to the
agreement,
the agreement is void.
ILLUSTRATION
 A, being entitled to an
estate for the life of B,
agrees to sell it to C.
 B was dead at the time of
the agreement, but both
parties were ignorant of the
fact.
 The agreement is void.
21. Effect of mistakes as to law.-

A contract is not voidable because

it was caused by a mistake
as to any law in force in India;
but
a mistake as to a law not in force
in India has the same effect as a
mistake of fact.
22.Contract caused by mistake
of one party as to matter of fact.-

A contract is not voidable

merely because it was
caused by one of the parties
to it being under a mistake
as to a matter of fact.
 ESSENTIALS TO AN AGREEMENT

 THE IDENTITY OF THE PARTIES.

 THE IDENTITY AND NATURE OF THE
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CONTRACT;
AND
 THE NATURE AND CONTENT OF THE
PROMISE ITSELF.
MISTAKE AS TO IDENTITY

Mistake as to identity
occurs where one
party represents
himself to be some
other person than he
really is.
Jaggan Nath Vs Secretary of State for India.

 A person called S, brother of

plaintiff, represented himself as
plaintiff and induced the Govt.
agent to contract with him.

 Held: Government’s agent was

deceived by the conduct of the
plaintiff and his brother. No valid
agreement.
MISTAKE AS TO SUBJECT MATTER.

 THE SUBJECT MATTER IS NON

EXISTENT.
 MISTAKE AS TO TITLE OR RIGHTS.
 DIFFERENT SUBJECT MATTER IN
MIND.
 MISTAKE AS TO SUBSTANCE OF
SUBJECT MATTER.
MISTAKE AS TO NATURE OF
PROMISE

 When a deed of one character is

executed under a mistaken impression
that it is of a different character then it
is wholly void and inoperative.
ILLUSTRATION
A gift deed is got signed under
the impression that it is only a
power of attorney.

The deed is inoperative and the

contract arising out of the
same is void.
Non est Factum
 DOCUMENTS MISTAKENLY
SIGNED.

 The defence of “non est factum”

enables a person who has signed
a contract to say that it is not his
document because he signed it
under some mistake.
RAJNEESH MALHOTRA