McCallum (aka Hain) v National Australia Bank Ltd (No 2)

McCallum (aka Hain) appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against the decision of the primary judge in proceedings brought by National Australia Bank Ltd. The dispute concerned the enforceability of a guarantee given by the appellant to the respondent.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the primary judge had erred in finding that the appellant was liable under the guarantee, notwithstanding her claims that she had been induced to enter into the guarantee by misleading and deceptive conduct on the part of the bank. Specifically, the court considered whether the bank's conduct in relation to the disclosure of information about the financial position of the principal debtor constituted misleading or deceptive conduct under the *Trade Practices Act 1974* (Cth) and whether such conduct had caused the appellant loss.

The Court of Appeal upheld the primary judge's findings. It reasoned that the bank had not engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct. The court applied the principles that a party is not obliged to volunteer information that might be detrimental to their interests, and that a failure to disclose information does not necessarily amount to misleading or deceptive conduct unless there is a reasonable expectation that such information would be disclosed. The court found that the appellant had not established that the bank had a duty to disclose the specific information she alleged was withheld, nor that the information provided was in any way misleading.

The appeal was dismissed.