Domachuk v Feiner

In *Domachuk and Anor v Feiner and Anor* [1996] NSWCA 157, the New South Wales Court of Appeal considered a dispute between the appellants, Domachuk and another, and the respondents, Feiner and another. The case concerned the enforceability of a contract for the sale of land, specifically whether a condition precedent within the contract had been satisfied.

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the purchasers had taken all reasonable steps to obtain finance for the purchase of the property, as required by a special condition in the contract. This condition stipulated that the contract was conditional upon the purchasers obtaining a loan of a specified amount from a financial institution. The court had to determine if the purchasers' actions in seeking finance met the contractual obligation to take all reasonable steps.

The Court of Appeal found that the purchasers had not taken all reasonable steps to obtain finance. Their Honour, Gleeson CJ, with whom Mahoney JA and Sheller JA agreed, held that the purchasers' conduct in seeking finance was insufficient to satisfy the contractual requirement. The legal principle applied was that where a contract contains a condition precedent requiring a party to take all reasonable steps to fulfil a condition, that party must demonstrate a genuine and diligent effort to do so. The court concluded that the purchasers' efforts fell short of this standard, and therefore the condition precedent had not been satisfied.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, finding that the contract had not become unconditional. The orders made reflected this finding, effectively setting aside the contract for sale.