Revisiting the Rule in L’Estrange v F Graucob Ltd

Abstract

extract] This well-established principle of contract law [the Rule in L’Estrange v F Graucob Ltd] is a simple one, yet its application to particular facts and circumstances is not always straightforward, as was demonstrated in the proceedings which culminated in Toll (FGCT) Pty Ltd v Alphapharm Pty Ltd. There, the High Court allowed an appeal from a decision of the Court of Appeal of New South Wales that a carrier could not rely upon an exemption of liability clause contained in a document signed by the consignor's agent because the carrier had not done what was reasonably sufficient to give the agent notice of the clause. The central question on appeal to the High Court was whether a party who had signed a contractual document was bound by its terms in circumstances where that party had not read its contents.