George Mitchell v Finney Lock Seeds – 1983

Legal Case Summary

George Mitchell (Chesterhall) Ltd v Finney Lock Seeds [1983] 2 AC 803

Exclusion clauses construction and Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977

Case:

the case revolved around the agreement between the Claimant and the Defendant, where the Defendant agreed to supply the Claimant with 30lb of Dutch winter cabbage seed. The invoice for the seeds, which was considered to be a part of the contract, stipulated that liability of the defendant was limited to replacing the seeds or the plants which were sold, where such were found to be defective. However, the clause excluded liability for loss or damage, including consequential loss or damage which arose from the seed being used. The Claimant planted the seed on 63 Acres of his land, but the seeds were a failure, producing a plant which was too small and which could not be eaten by humans, resulting in losses of £60,000 in addition to interest.

The main issues in this case were whether the exclusion clause could extend to the seeds used by the Claimant, bearing in mind that they were unfit to do the job they were sold to do and whether extending the effect of the exclusion clause in this way would be reasonable under s.2(2) of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977.

The court held that the exclusion did extend to the seeds sold to and used by the claimants, but it was an unfair term which could be struck down under the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977.

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