Haines v Metz

In *Haines v Metz*, the New South Wales Court of Appeal considered a dispute arising from a contract for the sale of land. The appellant, Haines, was the vendor and the respondent, Metz, was the purchaser. The central issue concerned the interpretation of a special condition within the contract of sale, which stipulated that the sale was conditional upon the purchaser obtaining finance on terms satisfactory to the purchaser.

The court was required to determine whether the purchaser had taken all reasonable steps to obtain finance as required by the special condition, and if not, whether the vendor was entitled to terminate the contract. The purchaser had been unable to secure finance on the terms he desired, and the vendor sought to treat the contract as at an end.

The Court of Appeal held that the special condition imposed an obligation on the purchaser to take all reasonable steps to obtain finance. However, it also recognised that the purchaser retained a discretion to determine whether the terms of the finance offered were satisfactory. In this instance, the court found that the purchaser had acted reasonably in rejecting the finance offer, as it did not meet his requirements. Consequently, the condition had not been fulfilled, and the purchaser was entitled to terminate the contract.

The appeal was dismissed, with the Court of Appeal affirming the primary judge's finding that the purchaser was not in breach of the contract and was entitled to terminate.