KATHERINE PTY LIMITED V THE CCD GROUP PTY LTD [2008] NSWSC 131
Supreme Court of New South Wales 18 February 2008
FACTS:
Katherine Pty Ltd (“Katherine”) engaged The CCD Group Pty Ltd (“CCD”) to undertake certain construction works on 3 projects across the eastern states of Australia.
A dispute arose and CCD issued payment claims in respect of the three various projects, of which the adjudicator (the second defendant), found in favour of CCD whereby he determined that Katherine was indebted to CCD in the amount of $340,000, of that amount some $240,000 related to interest calculated at the rate of 9 percent per month compounding..
Katherine (as the first plaintiff) thereafter sought relief from the Supreme Court under the Trade Practices Act 1974, submitting that the contractual rate of interest awarded to CCD was a penalty and therefore unconscionable.
ISSUES:
Whether the default interest provision in the ASOFIA contract executed in this case, was a penalty provision and therefore unconscionable in the terms of the Trade Practices Act 1974?
FINDING:
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