''Da Costa v Jones'' (1778) 2 Cowp 729 is a landmark

English contract law English contract law is the body of law that regulates legally binding agreements in England and Wales. With its roots in the lex mercatoria and the activism of the judiciary during the Industrial Revolution, it shares a heritage with countries ...

case.

Facts

A wager was made on the sex of a certain individual. The individual concerned was a French national known as Monsieur le

Chevalier D'Eon Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d' ...

. D'Eon was a captain in the Dragoons and had served France in diplomatic postings firstly in Russia and later in England. He had been awarded the Cross of Saint-Louis during the reign of Louis XV in recognition of his service in the Dragoons and his diplomatic work. In the reign of Louis XV, the king established a spy service which was known as the Secret. The existence of Secret was not known to the king's ministers: It reported directly to him. During his time in England he fell out of favour with two of the king's ministers (a dispute having started over the level of his expenses), leading to his replacement by another diplomat. He continued to serve his country as a spy and therefore reported indirectly to the king. He held concerns that if he were to return to France he could have been imprisoned on the Bastille. Over time, he made comments which threw doubt on his true sex. Being well known in London, comments about his sex became the subject of talk and comment in the press. In turn this led to numerous wagering contracts being entered into. The wager in the Da Costa v Jones was not the first to have come before the courts. In an earlier case (also before Lord Mansfield) it was held, on the evidence provided by witnesses (including two doctors) to a jury that Monsieur D'Eon was female. It was not until this case that the Court (Lord Mansfield) considered the public policy issues arising from this form of wager.

Judgment

Lord Mansfield William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, (2 March 1705 – 20 March 1793), was a British judge, politician, lawyer, and peer best known for his reforms to English law. Born in Scone Palace, Perthshire, to a family of Peerage of Scotland, Scott ...

held the contract was ineffective, on the basis that it was not in good faith.

Notes

References

*Warren Swain, in C Mitchell and P Mitchell, Landmark Cases in the Law of Contract (2008) * Gary Kates, Monsieur d'Eon Is a Woman (1995) Basic Books, English contract case law English good faith case law Lord Mansfield cases 1778 in case law 1778 in British law Court of King's Bench (England) cases Transgender history in the United Kingdom {{UK-law-stub

Facts

Judgment

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