Final answer:
Contract duties may be discharged due to impossibility when a performer dies, but not when a land seller dies since the estate can still transfer property. Severe frost damaging a crop can lead to the discharge of the contract due to frustration of purpose or impracticability.
Step-by-step explanation:
When it comes to analyzing whether a contract duty is discharged in various situations, it's important to consider the nature of the contracts and the events that transpire, affecting their execution.
- (a) When Vince Vincente, a famous singer, contracts to perform in your nightclub but dies prior to the performance, his contractual duties would typically be discharged due to impossibility. The personal services expected are unique to Vince, and hence, upon his death, fulfilling the contract becomes impossible and the duty is discharged.
- (b) In the case where Stacey contracts to sell you her land and then passes away before the transfer of title, her death does not discharge the contract. The contractual duties related to the sale of land can be performed by Stacey's estate, as the contract binds her heirs and assigns.
- (c) If Harley contracts to sell you 1000 bushels of apples from his only orchard, which is then destroyed by a severe frost, Harley may be discharged from his duty due to a doctrine known as frustration of purpose or impracticability. The unforeseen severe frost makes the contract impossible to perform, as the subject matter (the apples) no longer exists.