How do the courts deal with the battle of forms, where parties to an Essay

How do the courts appropriate with the battle of forms, where take upies to an in 10ded contract exchange forms containing mutually inconsistent terms - Essay Exampleten negotiate through exchanging correspondence, with a series of counter offers as to price and the contract terms this has been referred to as the Battle of the Forms (Beale, 2007). In considering this Beale in Chitty on Contracts underlines this problem and concludesThus it is possible by careful draftsmanship to avoid losing the battle of the forms, but not.. to win it. The most that the draftsman can be accredited of achieving is the stalemate situation where there is no contract at all (Beale, 2007).In order to encompass this legally, the courts have adopted the rifle shot principle, which was established in the case of Butler gondola Tool Co v- Ex Cell-O-Corp ((1981) 24 BLR 94). According to this principle, the presumption is that the last offer which has been accepted without cleverness will be determined as covering the conditions of the contract.This was confirmed in the recent case of Tekdata communication theory Ltd v Amphenol Ltd (2009 EWCA CIV 1209), which confirmed that there the general principle of the last shot wins was applicable unless there was irresponsible evidence of contrary intention. For example, in the Tekdata case itself the parties were in a production chain involving four companies producing aircraft components and at first instance, the trial judge departed from the last shot doctrine on the basis that the parties were part of a complex supply chain where prices were non-negotiable and the defendant did not suggest that its own terms and conditions were collective into the contract.However, the Court of Appeal rejected this rationale and held that the context of a long term relationship and the proceed of the parties may in certain circumstances be sufficiently strong to displace the usual last shot wins rule. Therefore, whilst the general principle is th at the last shot wins, the course of dealing between parties may sometimes negate this and result in the terms and conditions