A lesson in playing out contract disputes from the football field

摘要

Written contract terms are supposed to provide certainty for the parties, writes Sue Lindsey. Where there is doubt as to what they mean, to reach an interpretation the court grapples with what intentions the parties had when the contract was made. That can involve taking into account the background knowledge reasonably available to the parties when they reached agreement. This approach applies in all contractual areas, not least building. But to appreciate how practical and basic the analysis can be, it is informative to look at an example from another field which arose in the Court of Appeal recently (judgment 8 March 2005).