Contract of Sale Under Kenya Sale of Goods Law

The contract of sale, as it is known in Kenya today, derives its origins from the Roman consensual contract of emptio venditio. In D 18.1 (the title devoted to the contract of emptio venditio), there is no all-embracing definition of the special contract, but certain critical features can be extracted from the early fragments of the title:Sale is a contract of the law of nations, and so is concluded by simple agreement. There is no sale without a price. There can be no sale without a thing to be sold.The Roman-Dutch lawyers followed these guidelines closely in their definitions of the contract of sale. For example, Voet said:Purchase defined—But in this title, as distinguished from lease, it is a bonae fidei contract, resting on consent, by which it is arranged that merchandise shall be exchanged at a definite price. There are three essential requirements for it—consent, merchandise and price. If one of them is wanting, there is no purchase.