Nostin Pty Limited v Suzy Georges and Zena Georges

Nostin Pty Limited sought a declaration that Suzy and Zena Georges were liable to pay rent following the expiry of a lease, as well as interest and abatement of those sums. The lease between the parties expired on 8 December 2009. The Georges took the position that they were no longer liable to pay rent as the lease had expired. They also took the position that any loss to Nostin was due to their innocent misrepresentation as to the area of the premises, and as such, Nostin was not entitled to any damages. The court held that the lease was properly terminated and that the Georges were liable to pay rent following the expiry of the lease. The court also held that the Georges were liable to pay interest on overdue rent and that Nostin was entitled to an abatement of the sums payable by the Georges. The court held that the misrepresentation was not an effective defence to the claim for damages.

The legal issues in the case centred on the interpretation of the lease and whether the lease had properly expired. The court had to determine the meaning of the lease provisions that related to the termination of the lease and whether the lease was properly terminated. The court also had to determine whether the misrepresentation as to the area of the premises was an effective defence to the claim for damages. The court held that the lease was properly terminated and that the misrepresentation was not an effective defence to the claim for damages.

The court found that the lease was properly terminated on 8 December 2009 and that the Georges were liable to pay rent following the expiry of the lease. The court found that the misrepresentation as to the area of the premises did not affect the liability of the Georges to pay rent. The court found that the misrepresentation was an innocent misrepresentation and that the Georges were not liable to pay any damages to Nostin as a result of the misrepresentation. However, the court held that Nostin was entitled to an abatement of the sums payable by the Georges. The court held that the abatement should be $7,500.00.

The court ordered that the Georges were liable to pay rent at the rate of $2,833.53 inclusive of GST per calendar month, that they were liable to pay interest on overdue rent at the rate of 15% p.a., and that the total of the sums payable by the Georges to Nostin be abated by $7,500.00. The court also ordered that the parties file with the Registrar within 21 days minutes of order reflecting the declarations and orders. The court further ordered that liberty be reserved to each party to apply for re-list on 7 days' notice to the Registrar and to the other party. The court made no order as to costs, subject to para 54 of the reasons.