Zemhunt (Holdings) Ltd v Control Securities plc
Language: English Series: Scots Law Times ; 1992 SLT 151-156(6)Publication details: 1992Subject(s): Summary: Second Division 30 October 1991. A company made a successful bid at auction for a property subject to general conditions including a requirement that the purchasers pay a 10% deposit to the auctioneer to be held by him as agents to the seller. It also provided that the balance be paid in full on a subsequent date. A delay in payment of over ten days entitled the sellers to resile. The purchaser did fail to pay and the sellers resiled. The purchaser raised an action seeking repayment of the deposit. Before the Lord Ordinary the sellers argued that on proper construction of the contract the deposit fell to be forfeited and that it would be wrong to recover the deposit when termination of the contract was due to their own material breach. The LO held that `deposit` fell to be construed as meaning advance part payment and did not necessarily imply forfeiture, but that restitution should not be allowed to those who were responsible for terminating the contract. The purchasers appealed on| Item type | Current library | Call number | Copy number | Status | Barcode | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Law report | London Journal article | ABS45990 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | 1 | Available | 56217-1001 |
Second Division 30 October 1991. A company made a successful bid at auction for a property subject to general conditions including a requirement that the purchasers pay a 10% deposit to the auctioneer to be held by him as agents to the seller. It also provided that the balance be paid in full on a subsequent date. A delay in payment of over ten days entitled the sellers to resile. The purchaser did fail to pay and the sellers resiled. The purchaser raised an action seeking repayment of the deposit. Before the Lord Ordinary the sellers argued that on proper construction of the contract the deposit fell to be forfeited and that it would be wrong to recover the deposit when termination of the contract was due to their own material breach. The LO held that `deposit` fell to be construed as meaning advance part payment and did not necessarily imply forfeiture, but that restitution should not be allowed to those who were responsible for terminating the contract. The purchasers appealed on