SALE OF BUTCHERY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23364, 2 December 1937, Page 7

SALE OF BUTCHERY

ALLEGED MISREPRESENTATION \ 1, ACTION TO RESCIND CONTRACT ! , The action brought by Nicholas Ouwejan, a retired farmer, of Dunedin, to h!iave declared void a contract for the purchase by him of a butchery business at Lawrence from the Lawrence Meat Company, Ltd., was continued in the Supreme Court before his Honor Mr Justice Kennedy yesterday. This was the fourth day of the hearing. The plaimtiff seeks to recover a deposit of paid by him under the contract and any interest accruing. He is making an alternative claim for a».n order to have the contract rescinded on the grounds that he had . entered into it on the strength of representations made by the defendant company, which, to the knowledge of the defendant, were false. Obi the alternative claim he also seeks \o recover the deposit of £ 500, with '.interest. Mr A. G. Neill, with him Mr W. J. Meade, appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr J. S. Stinclair and Mr J. C. Mowat for the defendant company.

Continuing hie evidence, George William Kidd, a land salesman employed by Alfred Clark, Ltd., described OuwejanV.s preliminary inquiries about the business and the interviews that tiook place in his office between Ouwejan and Munro, managing director of the Lawrence Meat Company, Ltd. Ouwejan seemed quite satisfied to complete the purchase at s’ 1200. Witness described the discussions on financing the sale and Ouwejan’s inquiries about the property itn detail. The deposit of £SOO whs paid to witness’s firm, which still held it. To Mr Neill, witness said that he had not seen the premises. He had relied on the description given bv Munro. Alfred Ernest Wright, a salesman employed by Tamblyn., Rhodes and Jamieson, said that eiarlier in the year the business waif referred to his firm for sale. Witness interviewed Ouwejan abouit the sale of the property and business and took him to Lawrence to inspect the premises. Munro was with them, pud when Ouwejan said thaft he wished to live on the premises,; Munro said that they would have io be renovated first. Ouwejan latjsr made an offer through witness’s “firm which Munro accepted. However. Ouwejan later decided that he wduld not go on with the transaction' and the arrangements were cancelled. Charles William Sandiord Cox, manager of the Dunedin ibranch of the Bank of New South Wales, said that after the sale had been made, Ouwejan came to him find complained that the conditions of the contract had not been observed. He referred to the dirty statp of the premises. Witness advised him to consult the manager of the Lawrence branch. Witness did not remember being asked to. approve the c ontract, but he later suggested to Ouwejan that he should consult a solicitor. To Mr Neill, witness said that when Ouwejan called on him, he was always full of complaints about the state of the premises. Muriel Jane Milne, of Lawrence, said that she had been book-keeper to the Lawrence Meat Company, Ltd., since about 1931. She described the system of book-keeping which Was followed and explained the books in detail. , 1 To Mr Neill, witness said the company’s position had not beep improving. ■, I ... Henry Kitto, a retired public servant, of Milton, said that ,until recently he was residing at Lawrence as the stock inspector to the Department of Agriculture. He inspected the Lawrence Meat Company s slaughterhouse, and he signed Jan approval of a transfer of the licence from the Lawrence Meat Company to Ouwejan. Mr Sinclair began his address before the adjournment was takjen until this morning.