Where a credit application document contains an internal inconsistency — such as a circled 'No' to a question about willingness to guarantee alongside a signed guarantee provision — the question of intention to be bound is resolved by orthodox principles of construction of the document as a whole, not by giving the benefit of the doubt to the putative guarantor. A director's signature beneath clear and unequivocal guarantee terms will ordinarily prevail over a contrary indication elsewhere in the document, particularly where the contrary indication was not signed by the director personally. Section 444J of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) preserves a creditor's full rights under a guarantee, including the right to recover interest at the contractual rate, after the principal debtor's debt is released under a DOCA.
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