Good Faith in Australian Contract Law
Sydney Law School Research Paper No. 06/55
Journal of Contract Law, Vol. 19, p. 156, 2003
24 Pages Posted: 28 Nov 2006
Abstract
This article seeks to address and arrest the recent judicial trend to reduce 'good faith' in contract law to an implied term with a vague and inappropriate meaning. The authors argue that good faith is inherent in all common law contract principles, and that an attempt to imply an independent term requiring good faith is at once unnecessary and a retrograde step. The article further discusses the meaning of 'good faith', which requires a sophistocated understanding of the meaning of 'honesty'. Further, the problems with defining 'good faith' as including 'reasonableness' and 'unconscionability' are outlined.
Keywords: Good faith, Contract law, Commercial construction of contract, Implied terms
JEL Classification: K12, K40
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation