Kiem Dang Investment Pty Limited v Mansfield

Kiem Dang Investment Pty Limited (the plaintiff) brought proceedings against Mansfield (the defendant) in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned the plaintiff's claim for damages arising from the defendant's alleged breach of a contract for the sale of land. The plaintiff sought to recover losses it incurred due to the defendant's failure to complete the sale of a property located at 120-122 Old Northern Road, Baulkham Hills.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the defendant had validly terminated the contract for sale. Specifically, the Court had to determine if the defendant's notice of termination was effective, and if not, whether the plaintiff was entitled to damages for the defendant's repudiation of the contract. This involved an examination of the contractual terms relating to settlement and the parties' conduct in the lead-up to the purported termination.

Judge Altobelli found that the defendant's notice of termination was invalid. The Court reasoned that the defendant had not complied with the contractual requirements for issuing a notice to complete, which necessitated a prior notice specifying the default and allowing a reasonable period for rectification. The defendant's actions were therefore considered a repudiation of the contract, entitling the plaintiff to accept the repudiation and claim damages. The Court applied the principles of contract law concerning breach, repudiation, and the requirements for valid termination notices.

The Court ordered that the plaintiff was entitled to damages, with the quantum to be assessed.