The appellant owner had granted licences to the respondent to use the theatre for productions. After the initial six month’s period, the respondent was to have an option for further licences. The contract made no mention of a termination of that licence.
Held: The licence was not perpetual. On the giving of notice appropriate to the circumstances, the respondents would have a reasonable time to withdraw. The notice should allow them to ‘reap where they have sown’. The respondents had not in this case showed that they had been given insufficient ‘packing up’ time.
In the absence of any express term, a revocable licence can be revoked by whatever notice is reasonable in the circumstances.
Lord McDermott, Viscount Simon LC, Lord Porter
[1947] 2 All ER 381, [1948] AC 173, [1947] LJR 1422, (1947) 91 Sol Jo 504
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – In Re Spenborough Urban District Council’s agreement; Spenborough Corporation v Cooke Sons and Company Ltd ChD 1968
A contract regulating the flow of industrial effluents into a public sewer contained no power of termination notwithstanding that the agreement it replaced did.
Held: There is no presumption in law that a joint venture is not terminable.
Cited – Verrall v Great Yarmouth Borough Council CA 1980
In an appropriate case, a court will protect a contractual licence to occupy land by injunction or specific performance, where damages would not be an adequate remedy. A decree could issue where there was a wrongful repudiation of the licence, even . .
Cited – White v Blackmore CA 15-Jun-1972
The plaintiff attended a jalopy car race and was injured. It was a condition of his entry that he agreed that motor racing was dangerous and that he would not hold the organisers or others responsible if injured. He was injured when a safety rope, . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Contract
Leading Case
Updated: 02 November 2021; Ref: scu.450971
