The whole of The law relating relating to offer and acceptance

The fact that offer and acceptance are not a requirement of a valid contract,but only a means of analysing the existence of agreement, means that the whole of the law relating relating to offer and acceptance should best be regarded as resting on a small number of general principles, which are exemplified by innumerable decisions of facts in individual cases.

T.A Downes (a)analyse the meaning of this statement and assess the extent to which professor T.A Downes is justified in making it.(7mks) (b) Identify the ‘small number of general principles’ upon which the law of offer and acceptance are based.Using decided cases to illustrate your answer, examine the practical application of those principles by the courts when using offer and acceptance to decide whether a contract exists(8mks)