The Diana Prosperity or Reardon Smith Line Ltd v Yngvar Hansen-Tangen and Sanko SS & Co Ltd [1976] 1 WLR 989, HOL
Citation:The Diana Prosperity or Reardon Smith Line Ltd v Yngvar Hansen-Tangen and Sanko SS & Co Ltd [1976] 1 WLR 989, HOL
Rule of thumb:What is the basic purpose of a Judge in the lower Courts in relation to evidence and facts? Before a Judge can properly make a decision on a contract law matter, they have to immerse themselves in the full facts of the case.
Judgment:
This is a seminal case on evidence as it relates to contract. The Court held the famous rule that the Judge must place itself in the same factual matrix as the parties were in after the full trial, before then going on to interpret the contract. Judges must therefore be supplied with all the evidence in the case so that the full background is known before a decision on how the law applies is made.
Ratio-decidendi:
‘place itself in thought in the same factual matrix as that in which the parties were’, Lord Wilberforce
Warning: This is not professional legal advice. This is not professional legal education advice. Please obtain professional guidance before embarking on any legal course of action. This is just an interpretation of a Judgment by persons of legal insight & varying levels of legal specialism, experience & expertise. Please read the Judgment yourself and form your own interpretation of it with professional assistance.