Building Law Monthly
Unjust enrichment claim not inconsistent with contract
In
Barton v Gwyn-Jones [2019] EWCA Civ 1999, the Court of Appeal held that to permit the claimant to bring a claim in unjust enrichment was not to
subvert the contractual allocation of risk, nor was it inconsistent with the terms of the contract between the parties. The
contract between the parties was one which entitled the claimant to a fee of £1.2m if the claimant introduced a purchaser
who bought the defendant’s property for £6.5m. The agreement was not one which provided that the claimant would only be paid
if the property was sold for £6.5m. Accordingly, the claimant was held to be entitled to bring a claim in unjust enrichment
when the property was sold for £6m. The claimant was held to be entitled to recover £435,000 from the defendant.