Shevill v Builders Licensing Board (1982) 149 CLR 620

Facts: BLB leased property to a company. Shevill was guarantor of the company’s obligations. A clause in the lease allowed BLB to terminate if rent remained unpaid for 14 days. The company was often behind in paying the rent. When two months’ rent was outstanding, BLB terminated the lease and retook possession.

Held: BLB was not entitled to damages for loss of bargain (future rent owed) as the late payment of rent did not give BLB a common law right to terminate. The express termination term was not sufficiently important and the breach was not sufficiently serious.

Principle: To claim loss of bargain damages where a contract has been terminated in accordance with an express contractual term, the plaintiff must show they had common law right to terminate the contract.