The court was asked as to breach of an agreement to pay a man’s widow an annuity for life.
Held: A plaintiff is entitled to no more than nominal damages in respect of the defendant’s breach of a contract where the plaintiff himself has suffered no loss.
Lord Justice Denning said: ‘Old Peter Beswick was a coal merchant in Eccles, Lancashire. He had no business premises. All he had was a lorry, scales, and weights. He used to take the lorry to the yard of the National Coal Board, where he bagged coal and took it round to his customers in the neighbourhood. His nephew, John Joseph Beswick, helped him in his business. In March 1962, old Peter Beswick and his wife were both over 70. He had had his leg amputated and was not in good health. The nephew was anxious to get hold of the business before the old man died. So they went to a solicitor, Mr. Ashcroft, who drew up an agreement for them.’
Lord Justice Denning
[1966] Ch 538
England and Wales
Cited by:
Appeal from – Beswick v Beswick HL 29-Jun-1967
The deceased had assigned his coal merchant business to the respondent against a promise to pay andpound;5.00 a week to his widow whilst she lived. The respondent appealed an order requiring him to make the payments, saying that as a consolidating . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Contract, Damages
Updated: 10 December 2021; Ref: scu.238123