BM Sydney Building Materials Pty Ltd v AWT Building Group (Aust) Pty Ltd; BM Sydney Building Materials Pty Ltd v AWT Building Pty Ltd; Harpro Group Pty Ltd v BM Sydney Building Materials Pty Ltd [2019] NSWSC 421

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: BM Sydney Building Materials Pty Ltd v AWT Building Group (Aust) Pty Ltd; BM Sydney Building Materials Pty Ltd v AWT Building Pty Ltd; Harpro Group Pty Ltd v BM Sydney Building Materials Pty Ltd [2019] NSWSC 421 Hearing dates: 1, 2, 3 April 2019 Decision date: 16 April 2019 Jurisdiction: Equity - Technology and Construction List Before: Hammerschlag J Decision: In relation to proceeding 2015/178796: Judgment for BMS against AWT Building Group (Aust) Pty Ltd for $449,190.92

In relation to proceeding 2015/178811 Judgment for BMS against AWT Building (Aust) Pty Ltd of $275,558.15

In relation to proceeding 2017/317266: Claim dismissed Catchwords: EQUITY – estoppel – debtors raised, as a defence to admitted debts, an equitable estoppel based on a disputed oral conversation in which it alleged that the plaintiffs agreed, on certain conditions, not to claim payment – debtors claimed that they suffered prejudice in buying goods from the plaintiff and in procuring another party not to sue the plaintiffs on a different claim – approach to be taken to factual findings where the terms of an oral conversation are relied upon; HELD: conversation not established – no sufficient basis to ground an estoppel in equity; EQUITY – alleged breaches of statutory and equitable duties on the part of a de facto director and knowing participation by his company in the alleged breaches – alleged breaches consist of procuring payment to another party of monies due to the plaintiff object of the duties – where the recipient lent money to the plaintiff and the payments were made in reduction of the loan; HELD: no breach established and in any event no loss caused to the plaintiff – claim dismissed Legislation Cited: Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) Cases Cited: Briginshaw v Briginshaw (1938) 60 CLR 336 Helton v Allen (1940) 63 CLR 691 Rejfek v McElroy (1965) 112 CLR 517 Watson v Foxman (1995) 49 NSWLR 315 Category: Principal judgment Parties: 2015/178796 BM Sydney Building Materials Pty Ltd v AWT Building Group (Aust) Pty Ltd - Plaintiff AWT Building Group (Aust) Pty Ltd - First Defendant Wenge Teng - Second Defendant