Wheatley v Kavanagh [2018] NSWSC 1359

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Wheatley v Kavanagh [2018] NSWSC 1359 Hearing dates: 6 and 25 June 2018 Date of orders: 06 September 2018 Decision date: 06 September 2018 Jurisdiction: Equity Before: Ward CJ in Eq Decision: 1. Judgment for the plaintiff against the first defendant in the sum of $600,000 plus interest pursuant to s 100 of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) to the date of judgment (quantified up to and including 6 June 2018 at $55,947 and thereafter to be calculated pursuant to s 100 of the Act), plus costs. 2. Dismiss the plaintiff's claim against the second defendant with costs. Catchwords: LAND LAW – Conveyancing – Contract for sale – Vendor suing purchaser to recover deposit, interest and costs following termination of contract for purchaser's breach – Purchaser contending, inter alia, that contract was conditional upon purchaser obtaining finance – Held contract was not conditional and vendor had validly terminated the contract – Purchaser ordered to pay deposit, interest and costs

EQUITY – Trusts and trustees – Resulting trust or express trust – Whether purchaser held the benefit of the contract on trust, wholly or in part, for the purchaser's husband – Held there was no resulting trust or express trust Legislation Cited: Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW), s 100 Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW), s 66W Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), ss 79, 80 Trustee Act 1925 (NSW), s 59 Cases Cited: Amit Laundry Pty Ltd v Jain [2017] NSWSC 1495 Anderson v McPherson (No 2) [2012] WASC 19 Ardestani v Doss [2018] NSWSC 1084 Arkmill Pty Ltd v Tippers & Co Pty Ltd [2006] QSC 248 Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Letten (No 17) [2011] FCA 1420; (2011) 286 ALR 346; 87 ACSR 155 Bahr v Nicolay (No 2) (1998) 164 CLR 604; [1988] HCA 16 Black Uhlans Incorporated v New South Wales Crime Commission [2002] NSWSC 1060; 12 BPR 22,421 Brien v Dwyer (1978) 141 CLR 378; [1978] HCA 50 Briginshaw v Briginshaw (1938) 60 CLR 336; [1938] HCA 34 Brown v Tavern Operator Pty Ltd [2018] NSWSC 1290 Buffrey v Buffrey [2006] NSWSC 1349; 12 BPR 23,619 Byrnes v Kendle (2011) 243 CLR 253; [2011] HCA 26 Calverley v Green (1984) 155 CLR 242; [1984] HCA 81 Chief Commissioner of Stamp Duties (NSW) v Buckle (1998) 192 CLR 226; [1998] HCA 4 Commonwealth v Byrnes [2018] VSCA 41; 354 ALR 789 Cook v Fountain (1672) 3 Swan 585; 36 ER 984 Dyer v Dyer (1788) 2 Cox Eq Cas 92; 30 ER 42 Fowkes v Pascoe (1875) LR 10 Ch App 343 Furlong v Wise & Young Pty Ltd [2016] NSWSC 1839 Hardoon v Belilios [1901] AC 118 Herdegen v Federal Commissioner of Taxation (1988) 84 ALR 271 J W Broomhead (Vic) Pty Ltd (in liq) v J W Broomhead Pty Ltd [1985] VR 891 Jones (Liquidator) v Matrix Partners Pty Ltd [2018] FCAFC 40; 354 ALR 436 Kauter v Hilton (1953) 90 CLR 86; [1953] HCA 95 Knight v Knight (1840) 3 Beav 148; 49 ER 58 Korda v Australian Executor Trustees (SA) Ltd (2015) 255 CLR 62; [2015] HCA 6 La Housse v Counsel [2008] WASCA 207 Macedonian Orthodox Community Church St Petka Incorporated v His Eminence Petar The Diocesan Bishop of The Macedonian Orthodox Diocese of Australia and New Zealand (2008) 237 CLR 66; [2008] HCA 42 Mackowik v Kansas City, St. J. & C. B. R. Co. 94 SW 256 Macquarie Developments Pty Limited v Forrester [2005] NSWSC 674 Marginson v Ian Potter & Co (1976) 136 CLR 161; [1976] HCA 35 Muschinski v Dodds (1984) 160 CLR 583; [1985] HCA 78 Neilson v Letch (No 2) [2006] NSWCA 254 Nguyen v Phan (No 2) [2015] VSC 634 Octavo Investments Pty Ltd v Knight (1979) 144 CLR 360; [1979] HCA 61 Parkin v Thorold (1852) 16 Beav 59; 51 ER 698 Peter Sleiman Investments Pty Ltd as trustee for the Sleiman Family Trust v Deputy Commissioner of Taxation [2017] NSWCA 81 Re Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust (1991) 30 FCR 491 Re Enhill [1983] VR 564 Re Johnson; Shearman v Robinson (1880) 15 Ch D 458 Re Kerrigan; Ex parte Jones (1946) 47 SR (NSW) 76; 63 WN (NSW) 288 Re Pumfrey (1882) 22 Ch D 255 Ron Kingham Real Estate Pty Ltd v Edgar [1997] QCA 242; [1999] 2 Qd R 439 Salvo v New Tel Ltd [2005] NSWCA 281 Seamez (Australia) Pty Ltd v McLaughlin [1999] NSWSC 9 Silvia (Trustee) v Williams [2018] FCA 189 The Trustees of the Property of Cummins v Cummins (2006) 227 CLR 278; [2006] HCA 6 Trident General Insurance Co Ltd v McNiece Bros Pty Ltd (1988) 165 CLR 107; [1988] HCA 44 Trim Perfect Australia Pty Ltd v Albrook Constructions Pty Ltd [2006] NSWSC 153 Vacuum Oil Company Pty Ltd v Wiltshire (1945) 72 CLR 319; [1945] HCA 37 W & R Pty Ltd v Birdseye (2008) 102 SASR 477; [2008] SASC 321 Wilson v Darling Island Stevedoring & Lighterage Co Ltd (1956) 95 CLR 43; [1956] HCA 8 Texts Cited: Austin Scott, The Law of Trusts (3rd ed, 1967, Little, Brown and Company) Austin Scott, William Fratcher and Mark Ascher, Scott and Ascher on Trusts (5th ed, 2007, Aspen Publishers) David Hayton (General Editor), Paul Matthews and Charles Mitchell, Law of Trusts and Trustees (19th ed, 2016, LexisNexis) Edelman and Elliott, "Two Conceptions of Equitable Assignment" in John McKenna and Helen Jeffcoat (eds), Queensland Legal Yearbook 2013 (2014, Supreme Court Library Queensland), 280 Greg Tolhurst, The Assignment of Contractual Rights (2006, Hart Publishing) H A J Ford and William Anthony Lee, The Law of Trusts (4th ed, 2010, Thomson Reuters) James O'Donovan, The Modern Contract of Guarantee (2016, Thomson Reuters) John McGee (General Editor), Snell's Equity (32nd ed, 2010, Sweet & Maxwell) Lynton Tucker, Nicholas Le Poidevin and James Brightwell, Lewin on Trusts (19th ed, 2015, Sweet & Maxwell) Marcus Smith, The Law of Assignment (2007, Oxford University Press) Category: Principal judgment Parties: Kim Michelle Wheatley (Plaintiff) Katalin Kavanagh (First Defendant) Steven Paul Kavanagh (Second Defendant) Representation: Counsel: A Harding with M Kalyk (Plaintiff) S Kavanagh (Self represented) K Kavanagh (Self represented)