Understanding the Promissory Estoppel Lawsuit

Promissory Estoppel Lawsuit
Student’s Name
Institution
Course
Professor’s Name
Date
Promissory Estoppel Lawsuit
Oscar Madison would be most likely to file a promissory estoppel lawsuit. According to Calvert, Kozlowski, and Silver (2018), a promissory estoppel lawsuit is filed when one party promises another but then fails to keep the promise. Under promissory estoppel, the aggrieved party can receive compensation for the damages caused by an unkept promise. In the case of Madison, he was promised anonymity and protection of his identity in exchange for information about faulty aircraft from his employer. O'Grady, a reporter with the Big Bend Bulletin, agreed to leave Madison's details out while publishing the story. Still, when O'Grady realized that he might not publish the story, he decided to name Madison as his source. As revealed by Shepard (2019), journalists should maintain the confidentiality of their sources since they have a legal right to do so. Because they have a legal right, they also have a legal obligation to protect their anonymous sources, especially when they have promised the source to do so.
For Madison's lawsuit to be successful, it must satisfy four main requirements as outlined by Calvert, Kozlowski, and Silver (2018). First, Madison must prove that O'Grady clearly and definitively promised to leave his name out of the story. For instance, he may quote the exact words that the reporter used when promising them anonymity. Second, Madison must prove that O'Grady intended to convince him that he could rely on the anonymity promise. Often, journalists understand that sources would be unwilling to share sensitive information unless their confidentiality ...