Full case name Kean v Dunfoy Citation(s) [1952] NZLR 611 End date June 23, 1952 | Decided 23 June 1952 Judge(s) sitting Stanton J Ruling court High Court of New Zealand | |
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Kean v Dunfoy [1952] NZLR 611 is a cited New Zealand case regarding implied time limits to accept an offer, otherwise the offer lapses. In this case, it was held that a period of 12 months in accepting an offer was too long.
Contents
Background
Dunfoy purchased a section from Kean, and Dunfoy accepted the sale terms in September 1950. However, after paying the deposit, Dunfoy did not communicate his acceptance of Kean's offer until 12 months later in September 1951. Keen refused to settle, and instead resold the section to another party. Dunfoy sought specific performance under the initial sales agreement or damages.
Held
The Court held that to accept an offer, a party must communicate their acceptance of the offer within a reasonable period of time. Here it was held that a period of 12 months was not a reasonable period of time to let lapse.