AIM Partnership v Rathchime

AIM Partnership filed a lawsuit against Rathchime, seeking to join a director of the defendant in the proceedings. The court was asked to determine whether the case against the director must necessarily fail due to certain legal questions. These questions included whether the director provided a personal guarantee, if the guarantee was given without consideration, and whether the director's signature was affixed both in their capacity as a director and in a personal capacity. The court found that there were real questions to be tried concerning these issues, and the application to join the director was successful.

In a separate matter, AIM Partnership sought costs incurred during an application for the transfer of proceedings from the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal. The proceedings were initially commenced in the Tribunal, but it was alleged that the claim did not fall within the Tribunal's jurisdiction as it was not a 'building claim'. The meaning of 'building claim' was contested, and it was further argued that a cross-claim based on rescission for innocent misrepresentation could not have been determined by the Tribunal. As the merits of the cross-claim were unknown, the application for costs was dismissed.

The court's decision effectively allowed the plaintiff to join the director of the defendant in the proceedings, while dismissing the application for costs related to the transfer of proceedings from the Tribunal. The outcome of these proceedings could significantly impact the scope and direction of the litigation moving forward.