Cobram Laundry Services Pty Ltd v Murray Goulburn Co-operative Co Ltd

The case of Cobram Laundry Services Pty Ltd v Murray Goulburn Co-operative Co Ltd involved a dispute between the two companies over a contract that had allegedly been repudiated by Murray Goulburn Co-operative. The case was heard in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The primary issue for the court was to determine whether there was a repudiation of the contract and, if so, to ascertain the appropriate method for assessing damages.

The court was required to resolve several legal issues, including the construction of ambiguous terms within the contract and the appropriate accounting method for determining the plaintiff's loss of profits. The court had to consider the differing expert evidence presented by both parties regarding the plaintiff's financial losses. The plaintiff's expert, Mr Miller, and the defendant's expert, Mr Wong, had reached significantly different conclusions on the amount of damages owed to the plaintiff. The court needed to determine which expert's methodology was more accurate and justifiable.

The court found that the appropriate method for calculating damages was that of Mr Miller. The court accepted Mr Miller's approach as it was based on the actual fixed and variable costs incurred by the plaintiff, as evidenced by the bookkeeper's records, which were not challenged. The court rejected Mr Wong's approach, noting that he had misclassified certain fixed costs as variable and had altered his initial, more favourable report for the plaintiff after consultation with the defendant's legal team. The court also highlighted that Mr Wong's reduction of the rental allowance was based on a misunderstanding of the role of the trustee company. The court concluded that the correct figure for the rental allowance should be $169,321.86.

The court ordered that damages be assessed based on the calculations provided by Mr Miller.