Case Brief Essay

The case brief in this paper concerns a lawsuit involving Aon Risk Services, Inc., of Arkansas, appellant, V. John Meadors, appellee. Both Aon Risk Inc. and Combined Insurance, subsidiaries of Aon Corporation, had collaborated to issue an interdependency memo to motivate employees to promote insurance business, and in return, earn a bonus. The additional benefit payable to the workers depended on the terms of the insurance cover. Notably, Aon had promised to pay 30 percent of annual premium on life covers that exceeded a 15-year duration and 15 percent of the premiums for other types of covers paid by the clients in the first year. John believed that the terms in the memo would entitle him to a bonus above his employment contract. He connected Dillard Department Store with Combined Insurance, and on 24th March 2000, the two firms agreed on a five-year deal where the staffs at Dillard could purchase different types of insurance covers, including disability and life.

The contract between Dillard Company and Aon Cooperation had entitled John to receive a bonus based on terms stipulated in the memo. However, the latter sued his employer for a breach of a unilateral contract when the company failed to pay him the bonus. In their defense, the firm claimed that the memo was not definite, and thus, did not constitute an offer payable to the promise. Importantly, the argument by the appellant was that the memo did not satisfy all the requirements to establish a contract between the corporation and the employees. On its part, the jury ruled that the employer breached a unilateral contract and that John was entitled to the compensation. The panel of judges argued that in these types of contracts, the offeree does not need to communicate with the offeror to declare his or her acceptance of the terms. However, performing the task binds the offeror and offeree to the terms, which establishes a contract between them. Therefore, the jury ruled in favor of the appellee.