Tanzone Pty Ltd v Westpac Banking Corp

Tanzone Pty Ltd (the applicant) sought to restrain Westpac Banking Corporation (the respondent) from exercising its power of sale under a mortgage. The dispute concerned whether the applicant had a sufficient proprietary interest in the mortgaged property to grant it standing to bring the proceeding.

The primary legal issue before the High Court was whether Tanzone Pty Ltd had a sufficient proprietary interest in the land to challenge the mortgagee's exercise of its power of sale. This involved determining the nature of Tanzone's interest, particularly in light of a prior agreement for sale and the registration of a caveat.

The High Court held that Tanzone did not possess a sufficient proprietary interest in the land to maintain the proceeding. Gleeson CJ and McHugh J reasoned that while Tanzone had a contractual right to have the property conveyed to it, this did not amount to a proprietary interest in the land itself. The registration of a caveat, while protecting a claimed interest, did not create or confer such an interest. The court distinguished between a contractual right and a proprietary right, emphasizing that only the latter would ordinarily grant standing to challenge a mortgagee's sale.

The appeal was dismissed.