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''Raffles v Wichelhaus'' () (EWHC Exch J19 ), often called "The Peerless" case, is a leading case on mutual mistake in English contract law. The case established that when both parties to a contract are mistaken as to an essential element of the contract, the Court will attempt to find a reasonable interpretation from the context of the agreement before it will void it. The case's fame is bolstered by the ironic coincidence contained within: each party had in mind a particular ship, with no knowledge of the other's existence, yet each ship was named ''Peerless''. ==Facts== The claimant entered into a contract to sell "125 bales of Surat cotton, guarantied middling fair merchant's Dhollorah" to the defendant at the rate of d. per pound. The contract specified that the cotton would be arriving in Liverpool on the ship ''Peerless'' from Bombay ("to arrive ex Peerless from Bombay"). It so happened that there were two British ships named ''Peerless'' arriving in Liverpool from Bombay, one departing in October and another departing in December. The defendant, according to statements presented in court, thought the contract was for cotton on the October ship while the claimant thought the contract was for the cotton on the December ship. When the December ''Peerless'' arrived, the claimant tried to deliver it, however the defendant repudiated the agreement, saying that their contract was for the cotton on the October ''Peerless''. The claimant sued for breach of contract, arguing that the date of the ship was not relevant and the only purpose of specifying the name of the ship is that in the contingency that the ship sink en route, the contract could be voided. The issue before the Court was whether the defendant should be bound by the agreement to buy the cotton of the claimant's ''Peerless''. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Raffles v Wichelhaus」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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