Foakes v. Beer

Foakes v. Beer [1884] 9 A.C. 605 is a leading case from the House of Lords on the legal concept of consideration. It established the rule that prevents parties from discharging an obligation by part performance.

Facts

The appellant, John Weston Foakes, owed the respondent, Julia Beer, a sum of £2,090 19s. Beer agreed that she would not take any action against Foakes for the amount owed if he would sign an agreement promising to pay an inital sum of £500 and pay £150 twice yearly until the whole amont was paid back.

Foakes made the payments as agreed but refused to pay any interest on the loan as it was not part of the agreement.

Ruling

At trial, the court found in favor of Foakes, but was reversed by the court of appeal. The House of Lords upheld the ruling of the court of appeal in favor of Beer.

The reasoning behind their judgement was that though the agreement did not contemplate the interest owed, it could still be implied given an enforceable agreement. However, the promise to pay a debt was deemed not to be sufficient consideration as there was no additional benefit moving from Foakes to Beer that was not already owed to her.