High Court of Australia – Contract – Penalty – Hire of chattels for term – Liability of lessee on repossession and on return Before or at the end of term – Payment of deficiency where equipment sold or valued at amount less than appraisal value stated in lease and upon andwhich rent based – Credit for excess – Payment of present value of future instalments of rent – Whether issue of penalty and pre-estimate of damages arises.
Whether a term in a contract is a penalty, is a matter of substance rather than of mere form, and depends upon all the surrounding circumstances existing at the time of making the contract, as well as the terms of the contract itself:
Judges:
Barwick C.J.(1), McTiernan(2) and Walsh(3) JJ
Citations:
(1972) 126 CLR 131, [1972] HCA 1, 46 ALJR 106
Links:
Jurisdiction:
Australia
Cited by:
Cited – Cavendish Square Holding Bv v Talal El Makdessi; ParkingEye Ltd v Beavis SC 4-Nov-2015
The court reconsidered the law relating to penalty clauses in contracts. The first appeal, Cavendish Square Holding BV v Talal El Makdessi, raised the issue in relation to two clauses in a substantial commercial contract. The second appeal, . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Contract
Updated: 29 June 2022; Ref: scu.593103
