The high court has dismissed as an “abuse of process” a landowner’s second bid to sue David Wilson Homes over a 2004 option agreement in respect of parcels of land in Buckinghamshire.
Harbour Castle Ltd and its owner Phillip Jeans had sought to recover £27.5m in damages in a claim that David Wilson Homes (DWH) failed in its obligations to maximise the value of the site under the agreement.
A previous claim launched in 2009 was struck out by the court in 2012, and DWH argued that to allow this identical cause of action to proceed after it believed for a number of years that the dispute was at an end would be an abuse of process.
Today, deputy judge William Trower QC agreed and once again struck out Harbour Castle’s claim.
He said DWH had contended that the earlier order was “intended to bring finality, and was not appealed”.
The dispute arose out of an option agreement dated 26 October 2004 under which DWH was granted an option by Harbour Castle to acquire two adjoining parcels of land at Park Mill Farm, Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire.
Under the agreement, DWH was required to use all reasonable endeavours to obtain an “acceptable planning permission” as soon as reasonably practicable. There were also a number of other covenants by which DWH was obliged to maximise the open-market value of the property during the option period, which expired at the end of 2010.
Harbour Castle alleged that DWH was in breach of the obligation to use reasonable endeavours to obtain planning permission, with the result that the time-limited window for obtaining that permission closed.
The company claimed that, if DWH had used reasonable endeavours, it would have obtained planning permission and would have exercised the call option, which would have triggered a £27.5m purchase price.
However, the judge said: “I am satisfied that the present proceedings are an abuse of process and should be struck out accordingly.”
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