The Akins tests for adducing further evidence on appeal under s 75A(7) of the Supreme Court Act 1970 (NSW) are not exhaustive and possess some flexibility, but evidence that is inadmissible for the purpose for which it is tendered cannot be received regardless of whether the Akins tests are met. Where a contract is assignable, the surrounding circumstances available as an aid to construction are limited to those ascertainable without evidence from outside the terms of the document, but this does not preclude reference to the statutory context within which the contract operates. Technical legal terms in contracts drawn by lawyers are presumed to bear their technical meaning, and this presumption is consistent with the modern objective approach to contractual construction.
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