Mark Robinson and Brenda Robinson v Australian International Traders Pty Limited

The case of *Mark Robinson and Brenda Robinson v Australian International Traders Pty Limited* concerned a dispute between the Robinsons, as purchasers, and Australian International Traders Pty Limited, as vendor, regarding a contract for the sale of land. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of Queensland.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the vendor had validly terminated the contract for the sale of land due to the purchasers' alleged breach of a special condition requiring them to obtain finance approval by a specified date. The Court was required to determine the precise meaning and effect of this special condition and whether the purchasers had taken all reasonable steps to satisfy its requirements.

Justice Wilson found that the purchasers had not breached the special condition. His Honour reasoned that the purchasers had acted reasonably and diligently in their attempts to secure finance, having made multiple applications and followed the advice of their mortgage broker. The Court applied the principle that a party seeking to rely on a condition precedent to terminate a contract must demonstrate that the other party has failed to fulfil that condition, and that such failure was not due to the fault or inaction of the party seeking to terminate. In this instance, the vendor had not provided sufficient evidence to establish that the purchasers' failure to obtain finance was due to their own lack of reasonable endeavour.

The Court therefore ordered that the vendor's purported termination of the contract was invalid and that the contract remained on foot.