New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Contract cancellation

Legal area

Court

26 Oct 2023

BIRNIE v OUTWARD LIMITED [2023] NZHC 3008

Citation

[2023] NZHC 3008
Court

High Court

Summary judgment dismissed because defendants had arguable defences on multiple dispositive issues: it was not established that time was of the essence, that the breaches substantially altered benefit or burden under CCLA s37(2)(b), that plaintiffs had not affirmed the agreement, and whether Outward and Pricemaker were parties or liable; absence of negotiation evidence and factual matters meant real questions remained for trial or further factual inquiry.
4 Oct 2023

DEM HOME LTD v NEW GATE LTD [2023] NZHC 2709

Citation

[2023] NZHC 2709
Court

High Court

Payment Claim 2 met the formal statutory requirements of ss 20(2)-(4) CCA and was validly served; Dem Home failed to serve a payment schedule disputing the claim or New Gate's entitlement to issue it, therefore under s 22 CCA Dem Home became liable to pay and could not establish a substantial dispute under s 290(4)(a) Companies Act; Demasol requires entitlement/timing disputes to be raised by payment schedule, so the statutory demand could not be set aside.
31 Aug 2023

INTOP HOMES LIMITED v LOT 77 LIMITED [2023] NZHC 2418

Citation

[2023] NZHC 2418
Court

High Court

Intop did not have a caveatable interest when it lodged the caveat because it failed to follow the contractual mechanism in clauses 123 and 125 (no written demand and five working day cure period elapsed) required to create the right to demand a registrable memorandum of mortgage and thereby to register a caveat; the contingent security interest was therefore unperfected and did not survive cancellation, so the caveat must lapse.
2 Jun 2023

BLACKWATER PROPERTIES LIMITED v CRAWFORD GROUP LIMITED [2023] NZHC 1390 [2 June 2023]

Citation

[2023] NZHC 1390
Court

High Court

Judgment as to liability is entered for the plaintiffs in each proceeding because the defendants admitted liability; the defendants are entitled to contest the quantum of damages in accordance with Eaton J's direction, and an Associate Judge has jurisdiction under s 20(1)(f) Senior Courts Act 2016 to assess damages; the court directed a timetable for exchange of evidence, expert conferral and set hearing and case management dates for assessment of damages.
26 May 2023

WOOD v WAINUI HOLDINGS LTD [2023] NZHC 1251

Citation

[2023] NZHC 1251
Court

High Court

It was reasonably arguable that the vendor did not validly cancel the contract on 30 May 2022 because there was insufficient evidence that completion of the subdivision was prevented or that any opinion to refuse completion was reasonably held; therefore the purchaser had an equitable interest in PU5 capable of supporting a caveat and the caveat should be sustained on terms requiring the purchaser to prosecute substantive proceedings or until the vendor affirms the contract.
17 Feb 2023

JOE & CO BUILDERS LIMITED v THOMPSON [2023] NZHC 224

Citation

[2023] NZHC 224
Court

High Court

The applicant failed to establish a reasonably arguable/tenable equitable interest because the respondents engaged a licensed surveyor who located and, where practicable, monumented boundaries such that as at service of the settlement notice the respondents had satisfied clause 6.1; missing monumentation at impracticable points (including access strips/shared driveway and a point over services) is permissible under the Cadastral Survey Rules and lodging a CSD within six months is a statutory requirement but not a precondition to contractual compliance, therefore the caveat must lapse.
22 Aug 2022

XIEYAN MAO v HARGUN SINGH [2022] NZCA 390

Citation

(2022) 23 NZCPR 477
Court

Court of Appeal

Appellant's settlement notice was invalid because she was not in all material respects ready, willing and able to settle as she refused to provide vacant possession; purchaser was not obliged to tender settlement where futility was clearly established by the vendor's entrenched refusal/ inability to give vacant possession, and purchaser was entitled to seek specific performance; accordingly appeal dismissed.
15 Aug 2022

JING JUN YU AND ANDREW INVESTMENTS (2004) LIMITED v BRADLEY [2022] NZCA 378 [15 August 2022]

Citation

(2022) 23NZCPR 902
Court

Court of Appeal

Appeal dismissed: judge correctly found any initial agent misrepresentation was corrected before contract formation; purchaser did not validly and unconditionally invoke the clause 8 compensation procedure in time (boundary claim was conditional and not properly particularised) and thus could not withhold settlement; vendor's settlement notice was valid and vendor was entitled to treat purchaser's purported cancellation as repudiation and cancel; damages awarded for foreseeable losses were appropriate.
18 Jan 2022

BIRDWOOD RODNEY TRUSTEE LTD v BLUE MOON LTD [2022] NZHC 23

Citation

[2022] NZHC 23
Court

High Court

Blue Moon acquired the right to avoid the agreement for failure to fulfil the DD condition on 30 October 2020 but, under the contract, avoidance required written notice served in accordance with clause 1.3; Blue Moon also acquired the right to cancel for Birdwood's breach (non-payment of rates) effective from 27 November 2020 once time was made of the essence and the breach was not remedied; the February 2021 email and March 2021 text did not incontrovertibly satisfy the contract's notice formalities or clearly evince cancellation such that it was patently clear the caveat could not be mainta…
10 Nov 2021

CASSINY LTD v HOUNSLOW HOLDINGS LTD [2021] NZHC 3039

Citation

[2021] NZHC 3039
Court

High Court

The caveats were dismissed because they relied solely on an agreement for sale and purchase that had been validly cancelled by the vendor for the purchaser's failure to settle; such an agreement-based interest does not survive cancellation, the applicants (as defaulting purchasers) could not establish a purchaser's lien sufficient to support the caveats, and the caveats did not properly identify any alternate equitable interest; accordingly the caveats must lapse.