Question of Liability.

Southland Times, Issue 19854, 23 June 1906, Page 4

Question of Liability.

Another phase of the contractor's complications arising out of the building of the N.Sfi. Hardware stores, occupied the attention of the Court yesterday, when Mr S. E. McCarthy, S.M., heard the claims of Todd and Co. (Mr Jas. Harvey) £11) 10s ; Timpany Bros. (Mr A. B. Huggitt.) £llO 13s 0(1 ; and Oxenbridgo and Co. (Mr W. Macalister), £SO, v. T. V. Clarke and The N.'Z. Hardware Co. (Mr It. W. Hall). The contention of these plaiutilts was that their orders (for goods supplied) upon the defendant company should have been paid out of the moneys in the hands of the Company upon which Clarke could operate. It was slated that after the Company had received notice of the orders, £i6o had been paid to Clarke, and £IOO had been taken by the Company for goods supplied. Plaintiffs' counsel contended that there was money in the hands of the Company upon which Clarke could operate, and it should have 'gone to plaintiffs. | The Magistrate said the whole case was this : There was a clause in the contract under which Clarke was to purchase all the ironmongery used in the building from the Hardware Co. If the contractor was bound to take the goods from the ! Company, was the Company also I bound to supply the goods ’! Had the | Company the option of refusing ? If not then they were entitled to deduct from the moneys in hand the cost of goods supplied even after .the orders wore received. Counsel for plaintiff argued that even if the contract bound the Com.puny to supply the goods they jwere not bound to give credit any ■more than any other contractor, li the funds had been exhausted the Company would not have had to continue supplying goods. I His Worship reserved ids decision