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100+ Free FE-1 Law of Contract Practice Questions

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2026 Statistics

Key Facts: FE-1 Law of Contract Exam

Sale of Goods Acts 1893 & 1980

Key Examined Statutes

Law Society of Ireland FE-1 syllabus

3 hours

Single Written Paper (3.5 hrs online)

Law Society of Ireland

Answer 4 of 5

Essay/Problem Questions

Law Society of Ireland

50%

Pass Mark Per Subject

Law Society of Ireland

7 years

To Pass All 8 FE-1 Subjects

Law Society of Ireland

100+

Practice Questions Here

OpenExamPrep question bank

FE-1 Law of Contract is one of eight subjects in the Law Society of Ireland's FE-1, the entrance examination for solicitor training in Ireland. The paper is a single three-hour essay/problem exam (3.5 hours online) of five questions, of which candidates answer four, with a 50% pass mark. It is examined on Irish contract law and authorities. Core topics include formation (offer, acceptance, consideration, intention, and certainty), the terms of a contract and the statutory implied terms under the Sale of Goods Acts 1893 and 1980, and the vitiating factors of misrepresentation, mistake, duress, undue influence, and illegality. The paper also covers privity, discharge including frustration, and remedies - damages under the remoteness rule in Hadley v Baxendale, mitigation, and the equitable remedy of specific performance. The FE-1 is sat twice yearly (Spring and Autumn), subjects can be taken individually, and all eight must be passed within seven years.

Sample FE-1 Law of Contract Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your FE-1 Law of Contract exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1A shopkeeper displays a jacket in the window marked "€50". A customer enters and says, "I will take that jacket at the marked price." The shopkeeper refuses to sell. Which statement best reflects Irish contract law?
A.The display is an invitation to treat; the customer's statement is the offer, which the shopkeeper may refuse.
B.The display is an offer, so the shopkeeper is bound to sell once the customer indicated acceptance.
C.A binding contract was formed the moment the customer entered the shop intending to buy.
D.The shopkeeper must sell because advertising a price is a unilateral offer to the world.
Explanation: A display of goods in a shop window with a price is an invitation to treat, not an offer (Fisher v Bell; Minister for Industry and Commerce v Pim). The customer makes the offer to buy, which the shopkeeper is free to accept or reject. No contract arises until the seller accepts.
2A company advertised a chemical smoke ball, promising to pay £100 to anyone who used it as directed and still caught influenza, and stated it had deposited money in a bank to show sincerity. A purchaser used it correctly and caught the flu. Applying the principle most influential in Irish law, what is the position?
A.No contract arose because the advertisement was mere sales puff with no intention to be bound.
B.A binding unilateral contract arose; performing the stipulated conditions constituted acceptance.
C.No contract arose because the purchaser never communicated acceptance before using the product.
D.A contract arose only if the purchaser first notified the company of an intention to use the product.
Explanation: Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co establishes that a clear promise in an advertisement, supported by an indication of seriousness (the bank deposit), can be a unilateral offer accepted by performing the stipulated act. Communication of acceptance is waived in unilateral contracts; performance is acceptance.
3A offers by letter to sell goods to B and asks for a reply. B posts a letter of acceptance which is correctly addressed and stamped, but it is delayed and never arrives. The post was a reasonable means of reply. When, if at all, is the contract formed?
A.No contract is formed because A never received the acceptance.
B.A contract is formed only when A acknowledges B's reply.
C.A contract is formed when B posts the letter of acceptance.
D.A contract is formed when the letter would ordinarily have arrived.
Explanation: Under the postal acceptance rule (Adams v Lindsell; applied in Ireland in Sanderson v Cunningham and Kelly v Cruise Catering), where post is a reasonable mode of acceptance, acceptance is complete on posting, even if the letter is delayed or lost. The contract is therefore formed when B posts the letter.
4A offers to sell a car to B for €5,000. B replies, "I will give you €4,500." A refuses. B then says, "Very well, I accept your original price of €5,000." A says the deal is off. Is there a binding contract at €5,000?
A.Yes, because B ultimately matched A's stated price exactly.
B.Yes, because a counter-offer does not affect the validity of the original offer.
C.No, because the price was uncertain throughout the negotiations.
D.No, because B's counter-offer destroyed the original offer, which was no longer open to accept.
Explanation: A counter-offer rejects and extinguishes the original offer (Hyde v Wrench). Once B offered €4,500, A's original offer lapsed and could not later be accepted. A's offer was only revived if A chose to renew it, which A did not.
5A promises to keep an offer to sell land open to B for 14 days. On day 5, A sells the land to C. B, who had given no money for the promise to keep the offer open, seeks to hold A to the 14-day period. What is the legal position?
A.A may revoke the offer at any time before acceptance because B provided no consideration for the promise to keep it open.
B.A is bound for 14 days because A expressly promised to keep the offer open.
C.A is bound because a promise to keep an offer open is enforceable without consideration.
D.B can sue A for breach of the 14-day promise regardless of consideration.
Explanation: A bare promise to keep an offer open (an option) is not binding unless supported by consideration (Routledge v Grant). Because B paid nothing for the option, A was free to revoke the offer at any time before acceptance, including by selling to C.
6A posts an offer to B. Before B accepts, A posts a letter revoking the offer. B posts an acceptance before A's revocation reaches B. When does revocation take effect, and is there a contract?
A.Revocation is effective on posting, so no contract is formed.
B.Revocation is effective only when it reaches B; as B accepted first, a contract is formed.
C.Revocation is automatically effective once the original offer is made by post.
D.No contract is formed because revocation and acceptance crossed in the post.
Explanation: Unlike acceptance, revocation must actually be communicated to the offeree to be effective (Byrne v Van Tienhoven). Because B's acceptance was posted (and thus complete) before A's revocation reached B, a binding contract was formed.
7An uncle writes to his nephew, "I would be glad to buy your horse for £30.15s. If I hear no more about it, I consider the horse mine at that price." The nephew intends to sell but never replies. Is there a binding contract?
A.Yes, because the nephew intended to accept the offer.
B.Yes, because silence operated as acceptance on these terms.
C.No, because silence cannot generally constitute acceptance.
D.No, because the price was not sufficiently certain.
Explanation: An offeror cannot impose a contract by stipulating that silence will be treated as acceptance (Felthouse v Bindley). Acceptance must generally be communicated by words or conduct; the nephew's mere uncommunicated intention is insufficient.
8A places an advertisement: "Lost dog. Reward €200 to anyone who returns him." B, who has never seen the advertisement, finds the dog and returns it to A, later learning of the reward. Can B claim the reward?
A.Yes, because B performed the act required by the offer.
B.Yes, because rewards are payable to anyone who returns lost property.
C.No, because advertisements can never give rise to enforceable offers.
D.No, because B did not act in reliance on or with knowledge of the offer.
Explanation: Acceptance of a unilateral offer requires knowledge of the offer when performing the act (R v Clarke). A person ignorant of the reward when returning the dog cannot be said to have accepted the offer, so no contract arises.
9A buyer's purchase order contains the buyer's standard terms; the seller acknowledges with a confirmation containing the seller's own conflicting terms and a tear-off slip; the buyer signs and returns the slip without further objection, and the seller delivers. Whose terms most likely govern under a 'last shot' analysis?
A.The seller's terms, because the seller fired the last counter-offer which the buyer accepted by returning the signed slip.
B.The buyer's terms, because the buyer initiated the transaction with a purchase order.
C.Neither set of terms applies; the contract has no terms at all.
D.Both sets of terms apply cumulatively to the contract.
Explanation: In a 'battle of the forms', each conflicting set of terms is a counter-offer; the contract is usually on the terms of the party who fired the 'last shot' that was then accepted by conduct (Butler Machine Tool v Ex-Cell-O). Here the seller's terms prevailed once the buyer returned the signed slip and accepted delivery.
10A agrees to perform an existing contractual duty already owed to B, and B promises extra payment for it but obtains no additional practical benefit beyond performance already due. Under the orthodox Irish position, is B's promise of extra payment supported by consideration?
A.Yes, because performing a duty always supplies fresh consideration.
B.No, performance of an existing duty already owed to the promisor is generally not good consideration.
C.Yes, because the promise of extra payment is conclusive of consideration.
D.No, because consideration must always be of equal value to the promise.
Explanation: Performance of a pre-existing duty owed to the same party is generally not good consideration for a fresh promise (Stilk v Myrick). Although Williams v Roffey recognises a 'practical benefit' exception, that is engaged only where the promisor obtains a real additional benefit, which is absent here.

About the FE-1 Law of Contract Exam

FE-1 Law of Contract is one of eight subjects in the Law Society of Ireland's Final Examination - First Part (FE-1), the entrance examination that must be passed to begin solicitor training in Ireland. Each subject is examined by a single three-hour paper (3.5 hours for online sittings) of five essay and problem questions, of which candidates answer four, and a mark of 50% is required to pass. The Law of Contract paper tests the formation of a contract (offer, acceptance, consideration, intention, and certainty), the terms of a contract including the implied terms under the Sale of Goods Act 1893 and the Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1980, the vitiating factors (misrepresentation, mistake, duress, undue influence, and illegality), privity, discharge including frustration, and remedies such as damages (Hadley v Baxendale) and specific performance. The paper draws on Irish authorities throughout. Candidates may sit the eight FE-1 subjects individually and have seven years from their first sitting to pass all of them.

Assessment

Question count not published by the exam provider

Time Limit

3 hours (3.5 hours online)

Passing Score

50% per subject

Exam Fee

EUR 128 per subject (2026; recheck EUR 154) (Law Society of Ireland)

FE-1 Law of Contract Exam Content Outline

25%

Formation of Contract

Offer and acceptance including the postal rule, counter-offers, and revocation, consideration and the doctrines of sufficiency and part-payment of debt, the intention to create legal relations, and the requirements of certainty and completeness of terms

18%

Terms of the Contract

Express and implied terms and the parol evidence rule, the classification of terms as conditions, warranties, or innominate terms, the implied terms under the Sale of Goods Act 1893 and the Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1980, and the control of exemption clauses

25%

Vitiating Factors

Misrepresentation (innocent, negligent, and fraudulent) and its remedies, the categories of operative mistake (common, mutual, and unilateral), duress and economic duress, undue influence and unconscionable bargains, and illegality and contracts void on public-policy grounds

10%

Privity & Third Parties

The doctrine of privity of contract and the rule that a stranger to a contract cannot sue or be sued upon it, the relationship between privity and consideration, and the recognised exceptions for conferring benefits on third parties under Irish law

12%

Discharge of Contract

Discharge by performance and the entire-contract rule, discharge by agreement and by breach, the doctrine of frustration with its limits and consequences, and the distinction between repudiatory breach giving a right to terminate and lesser breaches sounding only in damages

10%

Remedies

Damages and the two limbs of remoteness in Hadley v Baxendale, the measure of expectation and reliance loss, the duty to mitigate, liquidated damages versus penalties, and the equitable remedies of specific performance and injunction

How to Pass the FE-1 Law of Contract Exam

What You Need to Know

  • Passing score: 50% per subject
  • Assessment: Question count not published by the exam provider
  • Time limit: 3 hours (3.5 hours online)
  • Exam fee: EUR 128 per subject (2026; recheck EUR 154)

Keys to Passing

  • Work through all 100 available questions
  • Review every answer and explanation
  • Track weak areas and revisit them
  • Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

FE-1 Law of Contract Study Tips from Top Performers

1Learn the formation building blocks precisely - offer versus invitation to treat, the postal rule and its exceptions, the sufficiency of consideration, and the presumptions on intention to create legal relations
2Map the vitiating factors as a decision tree: identify whether the issue is misrepresentation, mistake, duress, undue influence, or illegality, then state the effect (void or voidable) and the available remedy
3Know the implied terms under the Sale of Goods Act 1893 and the 1980 Act by heart, and be able to classify a broken term as a condition, warranty, or innominate term to determine the remedy
4For remedies questions, apply the two limbs of Hadley v Baxendale on remoteness, then address mitigation, the measure of loss, and whether specific performance would be granted in equity
5Practice full essay and problem answers under three-hour timed conditions, answering four of five questions, and use Law Society past papers to learn the examiners' recurring problem patterns
6Use a structured IRAC approach for problem questions - identify each issue, state the Irish rule with authority, apply it to the facts, and conclude, dealing with the parties one transaction at a time

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the FE-1 Law of Contract exam?

FE-1 Law of Contract is one of eight subjects in the Law Society of Ireland's Final Examination - First Part (FE-1), the entrance examination required to begin solicitor training in Ireland. The Contract paper tests Irish contract law, including formation, terms, vitiating factors, privity, discharge, and remedies, applying Irish authorities.

How is the FE-1 Law of Contract paper structured?

It is a single three-hour written paper (3.5 hours for online sittings) containing five essay and problem questions, of which candidates must answer four. There are no multiple-choice questions; answers are full written essays and problem analyses. A mark of 50% is required to pass the subject.

What sale-of-goods legislation is examined in FE-1 Contract?

The terms topic draws on the Sale of Goods Act 1893 and the Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1980, which imply terms as to title, description, merchantable quality, and fitness for purpose, and regulate exemption clauses. Candidates should know the conditions and warranties these Acts imply and how they operate in consumer and commercial sales.

Which remedies cases matter most for FE-1 Contract?

Damages are governed by the remoteness rule in Hadley v Baxendale, which sets out two limbs for recoverable loss, alongside the principles of mitigation and the measure of loss. Candidates should also know the distinction between liquidated damages and penalties and the discretionary equitable remedies of specific performance and injunction.

How much does the FE-1 cost and how often is it held?

The FE-1 is held twice a year, typically in Spring (around March) and Autumn (around October). The examination fee is approximately EUR 128 per subject (candidates should recheck the current fee, which may be around EUR 154). Each of the eight subjects is paid for and sat individually.

How long do I have to pass all eight FE-1 subjects?

Candidates have seven years from their first sitting to pass all eight FE-1 subjects. The subjects may be sat individually across multiple sittings, and a pass of 50% in each subject is required. Passes achieved within the window remain valid for the seven-year period.