Parisi v Mustafa

In *Parisi v Mustafa* [1996] NSWCA 421, the New South Wales Court of Appeal considered a dispute between a vendor and a purchaser concerning a contract for the sale of land. The purchaser had purported to terminate the contract, and the vendor sought to enforce it.

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the purchaser had validly terminated the contract for sale. This required the court to determine whether the vendor had breached a condition of the contract, thereby entitling the purchaser to terminate. Specifically, the court had to examine the nature of the condition and the vendor's conduct in relation to it.

The Court of Appeal held that the vendor had not breached the relevant condition of the contract. The court reasoned that the condition, which related to the provision of certain information by the vendor, had been substantially complied with. The court applied the principle that where a condition is not of the essence of the contract, substantial performance is sufficient to avoid a breach that would entitle the other party to terminate. The purchaser's attempt to terminate was therefore found to be wrongful.

The Court of Appeal allowed the vendor's appeal, set aside the orders of the primary judge, and ordered that the contract be specifically performed.