Neville v Licardy

In *Neville v Licardy* [1996] NSWCA 388, the New South Wales Court of Appeal considered a dispute between a vendor and a purchaser concerning the sale of a property. The purchaser sought to terminate the contract of sale, alleging that the vendor had failed to comply with a condition precedent.

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the vendor's conduct constituted a repudiation of the contract, thereby entitling the purchaser to terminate. Specifically, the court had to determine if the vendor's failure to obtain a necessary council approval by the stipulated date amounted to a breach of a condition precedent that discharged the contract.

The Court of Appeal held that the vendor's failure to obtain the council approval by the specified date was a breach of a condition precedent. The court reasoned that the condition was essential to the contract, and the vendor's inability to fulfil it, without a valid excuse, demonstrated an intention not to be bound by the contract's terms. Consequently, the purchaser was entitled to treat the contract as repudiated and terminate. The appeal was dismissed.