2020 Contract Law Question 4 — LawShortcut Independent Model Answer
Edward paid €600 in advance for a non-cancellable St Patrick's Day hotel package, then the parade was cancelled and a snow storm brought a government advisory against all travel. The question turns on frustration: whether the parade was the foundation of the bargain or merely incidental, and whether difficulty and official advice can ever amount to impossibility.
Scenario summary
Regal Hotel put a St Patrick’s Day Special on the market: three nights in a luxury suite from March 16th, in a room looking out over the route of the scheduled St Patrick’s Day parade. Every meal for 2 people was included across the three-day booking — breakfast, lunch and dinner — along with a range of spa treatments.
The price was €600 in total, on two conditions: the money was payable in advance, and the booking was non-cancellable.
Edward thought this excellent value. He reserved a suite for himself and his wife, paid the hotel, and looked forward to three days of absolute luxury.
On March 13th the city withdrew permission for the parade: a snow storm had been forecast, and going ahead was judged too dangerous. Since his money was non-refundable, Edward assumed he was stuck with the booking and kept it.
The storm arrived on March 16th, and the government issued advice that all travel should be avoided. Even so, a number of other guests checked in at Regal Hotel that day, having bought the same package.
Candidates are asked to advise Edward on what effect, if any, these events have on his contract with the hotel.
This is a LawShortcut scenario summary written in our own words. For the exact examined wording, use the official King’s Inns paper linked above.
What this model answer covers
Issues and structure addressed in the full LawShortcut model answer:
- Issue 1 — The cancelled parade: foundation or incidental?
- Issue 2 — The snow storm and the travel advisory
- Issue 3 — Consequences: the €600 and the non-refundable term
- Overall advice to Edward
- Where the 25 marks live — 11 / 9 / 3 / 2 across frustration of purpose, the storm and advisory, consequences, and framing
- Common ways to lose marks
- Authorities relied on
- The reusable answer structure
Read the complete LawShortcut model answer to this question — reading the question, issue spotting, the applicable law, application to the facts and conclusions — inside the King’s Inns Contract Law Model Answer Vault.
Part of the King’s Inns Contract Law Model Answer Vault — 30 independently authored model answers, 2020—2025.
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