Cirrus Real Time Processing Systems Pty Ltd v Jet Aviation Australia Pty Ltd (formerly Hawker Pacific Pty Ltd)

Cirrus Real Time Processing Systems Pty Ltd brought an appeal against Jet Aviation Australia Pty Ltd, previously known as Hawker Pacific Pty Ltd, concerning the formation of contracts related to the Aircrew Training Capability (ACTC) Program for the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF). The dispute primarily revolves around whether the parties intended to be legally bound by the terms of their agreement and if the agreement included all necessary terms. The case was heard in the Federal Court of Australia.

The primary legal issues the court had to decide were whether there was an objective intention to create legal relations between the parties and if the terms of the agreement were sufficiently certain and complete. The court also had to consider the relevance of post-contractual evidence and the subjective intentions of the parties in determining contractual intent. The court needed to assess the weight and admissibility of such evidence and decide if it should be excluded due to the parties' unawareness of it at the time of the contract.

The court found that neither the teaming agreement nor the version 4 qualification (V4Q) were agreed upon with sufficient certainty or completeness to establish a binding contract. The court agreed with previous judgments that excluded certain post-contractual evidence, but acknowledged that in exceptional cases, subjective intentions can be relevant and determinative. The court held that the primary judge’s decision to exclude subsequent matters unknown to both parties was correct. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed, and the appellant was ordered to pay the respondents' costs.

The final orders of the court were to dismiss the appeal and for the appellant to pay the respondents' costs of the appeal. The orders were to be taxed if not agreed upon.