Case M158/2010

Wynton Stone Australia Pty Ltd (in liq) v. MWH Australia Pty Ltd

Case Nos.

M158/2010; M159/2010

Case Information

Lower Court Judgment

3/11/2010 Supreme Court of Victoria (Court of Appeal)(Warren CJ, Buchanan & Nettle JJA)

[2010] VSCA 245

Catchwords

Practice and procedure — Pleadings — Trial judge stated, without objection, that pleaded issues would be treated as abandoned if not run in final submissions — Whether respondent abandoned breach of warranty claim.

Trade and commerce — Misleading and deceptive conduct — Warranty — Whether statement of fact in warranty constituted misleading and deceptive conduct — Causation — Reliance — Inferred reliance — Whether causation able to be inferred in absence of direct evidence of reliance — Gould v Vaggelas (1985) 157 CLR 215; Campbell v Backoffice Investments Pty Ltd [2010] VSCA 245.

Contracts — Construction and interpretation — Intention of parties — Deed of Novation — Whether release of "all claims and demands whatsoever in respect of the contract" intended to cover breaches of contract occurring before date of Deed — Application of "business commonsense point of view" where language not ambiguous on its face.

Short Particulars

Documents

01/12/2010 Application for special leave to appeal

11/03/2011 Hearing (SLA, Melbourne)

08/04/2011 Written submissions (Applicant)

08/04/2011 Chronology

02/05/2011 Written submissions (Respondent)

09/05/2011 Reply

08/06/2011 Hearing (Full Court, Canberra) (Special leave refused with costs)