Damages for distress and inconvenience are available for breach of a building contract in Western Australia and are not limited to contracts the object of which is to provide enjoyment, relaxation or freedom from molestation; they extend to cases where distress proceeds from physical inconvenience caused by the breach. An arbitrator's award of delay damages calculated by reference to the period from the contractual completion date to the completion of rectification works (rather than to the date of actual practical completion) constitutes a manifest error of law where the contractual obligation relates only to achieving practical completion. Errors of law in an arbitral award, even combined with allegedly excessive fees, do not constitute misconduct under s 42 of the Commercial Arbitration Act 1985 (WA).
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 7 later cases that cite this judgment.
1 of the 7 citing cases carry a classified treatment. How each court treated it is available to signed-in members.