Advice Sofia and her father on the legal position Essay

Advice Sofia and her father on the legal position - Essay Example In the course of valuation the expert came across the 1885 cent, but to the dismay Sofias father declared it to be counterfeit. (This was later confirmed by a coin expert at Sothebys who said it was worthless.) Sofia returned to Hockley Coins to demand the return of her money. David Jones apologised for the embarrassment caused but claimed that he sold the coin in good faith, believing it to be genuine, as he could not tell that it was counterfeit he could not accept liability in the matter. He refused to return Sofias money and pointed to large sign- No refunds/Credit Notes only- in the shop. Sofia refused a credit note. In order to advise Sofia and her father with regard to their legal position it is necessary to consider the law in relation to misrepresentation and examine the elements that they would need to prove in order to succeed in such a claim. The starting point is to refer to the Misrepresentation Act 1967 in order to determine whether either party might be able to substantiate a claim under these provisions. In order for the court to decide that a misrepresentation has occurred they will require proof that the person claiming misrepresentation was induced into entering into the contract as a direct result of comments made by the other party. In law the courts will consider that a misrepresentation has occurred if the plaintiff can show that the respondent made a false statement about the product which induced them into entering into that contract. Historically the courts have recognised three distinct forms of misrepresentation, fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation1 and innocent misrepresentation2. When determining damages it is important for the court to distinguish whether the misrepresentation has been fraudulent, negligent or innocent. The courts will determine that a fraudulent misrepresentation has occurred if it can be proven that the person making the representation to the plaintiff made the statement without belief