Wells v W G & F L Fischer Pty Ltd (Trustee)

Wells (the applicant) sought an order for possession of a property against W G & F L Fischer Pty Ltd (the respondent), which was the trustee of the Fischer Family Trust. The dispute concerned the respondent's continued occupation of the property after the termination of a licence agreement. The applicant contended that the respondent was a trespasser and therefore liable to deliver up possession. The matter came before Heffernan J of the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the licence agreement, which had expired by its own terms, had been validly terminated by the applicant. The applicant argued that the termination was effective, rendering the respondent's continued presence on the property unlawful. The respondent, however, maintained that the termination was ineffective, and that it retained a right to occupy the property.

Heffernan J considered the terms of the licence agreement and the correspondence exchanged between the parties. His Honour found that the agreement had expired on its stated termination date. Crucially, the court determined that the applicant's subsequent conduct, including the issuance of a notice to terminate, was not a prerequisite for the termination of the licence, as the licence had already ended by effluxion of time. The legal principle applied was that a licence, like any other contract, can expire according to its own terms, and no further action is required to bring it to an end once that date has passed.

The court ordered that the respondent deliver up possession of the property to the applicant.