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4.4-6
Capacity to Contract - Apparent
Authority
New March 5, 2010
The
defendant <name of principal> maintains that (he/she) is not liable to
the plaintiff because <name of agent> did not have either express or
implied authority to enter into <specify transaction> that is the basis
of the plaintiff=s claim. Even if you do not find that the <name of agent>
had either express or implied authority, you must still decide whether
(he/she/it) had apparent authority. Apparent authority is that authority which a
principal, through (his/her/its) own acts or statements, causes or allows a
third person to believe (his/her/its) agent possesses.
Consequently, apparent authority is to be determined, not by the agent=s
own acts, but by the acts of the agent's principal. The plaintiff has the
burden of proving that <name of agent> had apparent authority to enter
into <specify transaction> on behalf of the defendant, and (he/she/it)
must prove that the defendant caused the plaintiff to believe that <name of
agent> had such authority.
To prove
that <name of agent> had apparent authority to bind the defendant by
(his/her/its) actions the plaintiff must show:
(1) that
the acts or statements of the defendant would lead a reasonable person to
believe that <name of agent> had sufficient authority to enter into <specify
transaction> or that the defendant knowingly allowed <name of agent>
to act as if (he/she/it) had such authority; and
(2) that,
as a result, the plaintiff, acting in good faith, reasonably believed that <name
of agent> had the authority to bind the defendant to (his/her/its) actions.
If the
plaintiff does prove both of these elements, then you must find that <name of
agent> had apparent authority to bind the defendant by (his/her/its) actions
in <specify transaction>, and that, therefore, the defendant is liable to
the plaintiff. If the plaintiff fails to prove either one of these elements,
then you may not find that <name of agent> had apparent authority to bind
the defendant, and the defendant is not liable to the plaintiff for <specify
transaction>.
Authority
Tomlinson v. Board of Education,
226 Conn. 704, 734‑35 (1993); Yale University v. Out of the Box, LLC,
118 Conn. App. 800, 808 (2010).
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