AFFECTING CONTRACTS.

Taranaki Daily News, 26 March 1921, Page 6

AFFECTING CONTRACTS.

NW LEGISLATION PASSED. WAR PROVISION EXTENDED. An extension of the power of the "Supreme Court to suspend or vary contracts was approved by the House of Representatives on Monday without debate. A clause dealing with the matter was attached to the Governor-Gen-eral’s Message concerning money held on deposit. It was not mentioned by the Prime Minister, and it did not appear to have attracted the attention of members t of the House. The War Legislation Act of 1917 gave the Supreme Court wide powers to suspend, vary, or annul the terms of certain contracts entered into before August, 1914. The final clause of the amendments adopted on Monday extends the protection to similar contracts entered into before March 1, 1921, and extends also the grounds on which the Court may take action. The original provision in section 17 of»the Act of 1917, as amended by the War Legislation Act, of 1918, gave the Supreme Court power to suspend or annul contracts under certain conditions. The clause as now amended provides that “Where an application by any party to a contract for the construction of any building or work, or for the supply of any material, for any building or work . , . the Supreme Court is satisfied that owing to the prevention or the restriction of or the delay in the supply or delivery of material or the diversion or insufficiency of labor pr the disorganisation of the mar kets or financial stringency occasioned by or consequent upon the late war with Germany, the enforcement of the contract according to its terms, or its expiry by effluxion of time, would be the cause of serious hardship, the Court or Judge may, after consideration of the circumstances of the case, and the position of all the parties to the contract, and any offer which may have been made by any party for the variation of the contract or extension of the terms thereof, suspend or vary or annul the contract or extend the terms thereof, or stay proceedings for the enforcement of the contract or any rights arising thereunder on such conditions, if any, as the Court or Judge may think fit.” The application may be made by “any party to a contract by which the construction of any building or work is made a condition precedent of any right under the contract” or “by any party to a contract entitling any person to cut timber on any land or to remove timber from any land.” When the new clauses reached the Legislative Council/’ the Attorney-Gen-eral said that a Wholly unforseen and novel financial exigency had occurred, and the Government therefore was asking chat the Supreme Court should have extended powers with regard to a limited class of contracts. The Council accepted the proposals.