Kerry Albert Pty Ltd t/as Kerry Albert and Co v Fuller

The case of Kerry Albert Pty Ltd t/as Kerry Albert and Co v Fuller involved a dispute over whether the parties had entered into a binding agreement at a mediation and whether any such agreement was contingent upon the agreement being recorded in an executed deed. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The plaintiff sought to enforce an alleged agreement reached during mediation, contending that the defendants had agreed to pay a specified amount in settlement of their dispute. The defendants denied the existence of any binding agreement and argued that any agreement reached was subject to being documented in a formal deed.

The court was required to determine several legal issues, including whether there was a binding agreement between the parties, whether any such agreement was conditional on the execution of a formal deed, and whether the plaintiff could rely on the implied actual or ostensible authority of the defendants' solicitor. The court also needed to decide if the defendants had ratified the solicitor's acts.

The court found that the parties had indeed reached a binding agreement during the mediation, which was not contingent upon the execution of a formal deed. The court held that the plaintiff could rely on the implied actual and ostensible authority of the defendants' solicitor, placing the case in the relevant category established in Masters v Cameron. Furthermore, the court determined that the defendants had ratified the solicitor's acts, thereby binding themselves to the agreement. Consequently, the court entered judgment in favour of the plaintiff against the defendants.