whether a Deed of Release (the Deed) between the Applicant and Swinburne University of Technology (Swinburne) is valid so as to be enforceable against the Applicant
whether the Deed is vitiated or is otherwise invalid
Quick Take
1A party's subjective belief that a deed of release would operate differently from its clear and unambiguous terms does not vitiate the deed where the counterparty did not convey the representations alleged, and the objective meaning of the communications and the deed itself did not support the asserted understanding.
2Where a proposed amendment to a deed's wording is specifically rejected by the counterparty with an express explanation that the proposed characterisation is 'not correct', the requesting party cannot thereafter contend that the rejected characterisation was implicitly accepted or that the counterparty's silence on related matters amounted to a representation consistent with the rejected wording.
3Allegations that pre-contractual conduct constituted adverse action under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) do not, without an established vitiating factor such as duress or misrepresentation, render a subsequently executed settlement deed invalid or unenforceable.
