Ye v Chen

The appeal concerned a dispute between Ye (the applicant) and Chen (the respondent) arising from a handwritten document promising a refund of a deposit paid by the respondent to the applicant's company for migration agency services. The Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales was required to determine whether the applicant had signed the document in his personal capacity or solely as a director of the company.

The central legal issues before the court were: first, whether the applicant's unqualified signature on the document rendered him personally liable for the refund, and second, whether the respondent had provided sufficient consideration to support the promise of a refund. The court also considered whether the surrounding circumstances, including the applicant's repeated failure to provide details of the visa application, supported the conclusion that the applicant intended to be personally bound.

The court held that a presumption of personal liability arises from an unqualified signature on a document, and this presumption had not been rebutted by evidence of a contrary intention. The court found that the respondent had provided consideration by forbearing to sue the applicant and his company. This conclusion was supported by the surrounding circumstances, which indicated that the applicant was repeatedly pressed for information regarding the visa application, suggesting a personal engagement with the respondent's concerns.

The application for leave to appeal was dismissed with costs.