RES exam question on Contract & Agency Law: Mr Pillai agreed orally to buy Mdm Ng's shophouse
Mr Pillai agreed orally to buy Mdm Ng's shophouse. With her knowledge he paid a $100,000 deposit, moved in and spent $80,000 refitting the ground floor. Nothing was ever signed, and Mdm Ng now denies there was a sale. On what basis may Mr Pillai still seek to enforce the oral agreement?
- AQuantum meruit, which makes the oral agreement enforceable up to the value of his refit
- BPart performance in equity, as his acts point to a contract concerning the land
- CRectification, which lets the court write the missing terms into a signed contract of sale
- DPromissory estoppel, which sets the writing requirement aside for any party who relied on a promise
Show answer & explanation
Answer
B. Part performance in equity, as his acts point to a contract concerning the land
Explanation
Answer: Part performance in equity. His deposit, possession with her knowledge and refit point to a contract for the shophouse, so he may seek specific performance.Rule: An unwritten land contract is unenforceable, not void. A party who has acted on it may seek specific performance where his acts are referable to some contract concerning the land, so the statute is not used as an instrument of fraud.Source: Civil Law Act 1909, section 6(d); RESPrep /learn/contract-and-agency-law-res, current at 1 October 2026
Why the other options are wrong
- Quantum meruit up to the refit's value: It could at most recover the value of work, and does not enforce the sale.
- Rectification writing in the missing terms: Rectification corrects a written document that misrecords an agreement, and here there is no document.
- Promissory estoppel overriding the writing rule: It is a shield against enforcing strict rights, not a general override of the writing rule.
Study the concept behind this question: Remedies for Breach of a Property Contract
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