The purchasers sought rescission of a 15 year lease of business premises. Unknown to either party, the planning permission restricted their use as offices to a period of no more than two years.
Held: There had been a misrepresentation by the lessors which entitled the lessees to rescind the agreement. Dealing with an alternative plea of common mistake, the court followed Solle v Butcher and Grist v Bailey in holding that the lease could be rescinded on the ground that it had been concluded under a mistake which was fundamental. The defendant’s failure to make the search which would have disclosed the mistake did not disentitle them from relying on their mistake.
Judges:
Dillon QC
Citations:
[1978] 1 WLR 1128, [1978] 2 All ER 810
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – William Sindall Plc v Cambridgeshire County Council CA 21-May-1993
Land was bought for development, but the purchaser later discovered a sewage pipe which very substantially limited its development potential. The existence of the pipe had not been disclosed on the sale, being unknown to the seller.
Held: . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Contract, Land
Updated: 21 June 2022; Ref: scu.185671