Abboud v Lazarevic

In *Abboud v Lazarevic*, the New South Wales Court of Appeal considered a dispute between the parties concerning a contract for the sale of land. The appellant, Mr. Abboud, was the vendor and the respondent, Mr. Lazarevic, was the purchaser. The core of the disagreement revolved around whether the purchaser had validly terminated the contract due to the vendor's alleged failure to comply with a contractual obligation.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the vendor's conduct constituted a breach of a condition precedent to the contract, thereby entitling the purchaser to terminate. Specifically, the Court had to determine if the vendor had taken all reasonable steps to obtain a necessary planning approval within the timeframe stipulated by the contract, and if not, whether this failure amounted to a repudiation of the contract.

The Court of Appeal found that the vendor had not taken all reasonable steps to obtain the planning approval. It reasoned that the contractual obligation required more than mere passive waiting; it necessitated active pursuit of the approval. By failing to adequately engage with the relevant authorities and pursue the application with due diligence, the vendor had breached a fundamental term of the contract. This breach was considered sufficiently serious to amount to a repudiation, giving the purchaser the right to terminate. The Court upheld the primary judge's finding that the termination was valid.