203 Castlereagh Pty Ltd v Payce Properties Pty Ltd and Skybloo Holdings Pty Ltd

The case of 203 Castlereagh Pty Ltd v Payce Properties Pty Ltd and Skybloo Holdings Pty Ltd involved a dispute over a breach of a clause in a lease that granted the right of first refusal for the sale of a property. The dispute was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The plaintiff, Castlereagh, alleged that the defendants, Payce Properties and Skybloo Holdings, breached a clause in the lease by not offering Castlereagh the opportunity to purchase the premises before selling them to a third party. Castlereagh sought relief under section 71B of the Retail Leases Act and raised the issue of whether the defendants had waived their right to enforce the clause.

The court was required to determine whether Castlereagh could proceed with its claim despite it being more than three years after the liability or obligation arose. The court also had to decide whether Payce breached Special Condition 1 by not offering the purchase of the premises to Castlereagh and whether the defendants had waived their right to enforce the clause. The court found that Castlereagh could proceed with its claim despite the delay, as the defendants had not raised the issue of delay as a defence. The court also found that Payce breached Special Condition 1 by not offering the purchase of the premises to Castlereagh. The court found that the defendants had not waived their right to enforce the clause, as there was no evidence of an unequivocal and unmistakable course of conduct inconsistent with the enforcement of the clause.

The court ordered that Castlereagh could lodge its retail tenancy claim in these proceedings notwithstanding it is more than 3 years after the liability or obligation that is the subject of the claim arose. The court also ordered that Payce breached Special Condition 1 by not offering the purchase of the premises to Castlereagh. The matter was relisted in the first directions hearing 14 days after publication of these orders for determination of damages for breach.