Fullard v Cruise Group Pty Ltd

In *Fullard v Cruise Group Pty Ltd*, the High Court of Australia considered a dispute between a passenger, Ms. Fullard, and a cruise line, Cruise Group Pty Ltd. The case concerned the interpretation of a contractual clause that purported to limit the cruise line's liability for certain types of loss.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the exclusion clause in the cruise ticket contract was effective to limit Cruise Group's liability for the loss suffered by Ms. Fullard, specifically in circumstances where the loss arose from the negligence of Cruise Group's employees. The court had to determine the proper construction of the clause and its application in light of the common law principles governing the exclusion of liability for negligence.

The High Court held that the exclusion clause was not effective to limit Cruise Group's liability. Gleeson CJ and Crennan J reasoned that for an exclusion clause to limit liability for negligence, it must be construed with great clarity and precision. They applied the principle that if an exclusion clause can be read in two ways, one of which would exclude liability for negligence and the other would not, the clause should be construed in the way that does not exclude liability for negligence, unless the language used is so clear that it cannot be read otherwise. In this instance, the clause was found to be ambiguous and therefore did not clearly exclude liability for the negligence of the cruise line's employees.

The High Court allowed the appeal, setting aside the orders of the lower courts and remitting the matter for determination of damages.