Delaney v Winn

The appeal in *Delaney v Winn* concerned a dispute arising from alleged negligence. The appellants, who were the purchasers of a property, brought proceedings against the respondent, who was the vendor. The primary judge had found in favour of the respondent, and the appellants sought to overturn this decision on appeal.

The central legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the primary judge had erred in: (a) failing to find a duty of care owed by the respondent to the appellants, particularly in relation to a duty that was not pleaded at trial and was inconsistent with the appellants' case as conducted below; (b) finding no breach of duty by the respondent in failing to carry out an inspection in accordance with an Australian Standard and in providing negligent advice; and (c) formulating the test for causation of damage in a claim for pure economic loss. The appellants also challenged the primary judge's factual findings, the adequacy of the reasons given for those findings, and the assessment of witness credibility.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding no error in the primary judge's decision. The Court held that the primary judge was correct in not finding a duty of care that had not been pleaded and was inconsistent with the way the case was run at first instance. Furthermore, the Court found no error in the primary judge's assessment that there was no breach of duty regarding the inspection or the advice provided. The Court also affirmed the primary judge's formulation of the test for causation in pure economic loss claims.

The Court of Appeal ordered that time for the filing and service of the appellants’ notice of appeal be extended to 21 August 2014, but otherwise dismissed the appeal with costs.