Material Breach in UK Law

Materiality must be assessed by reference to the ability of the landlord to relet or sell the property without delay or additional expenditure. But I see no justification for attributing to the parties an intention that the insertion of the word 'material' was intended to permit only breaches which were trivial or trifling. Those words are of uncertain meaning also and are not the words used by the parties.

In my judgment, Judge Rich's reasoning is to be followed since it cogently gives meaning to the expression "material" in the context of a breach of covenant and its effect on a break or option clause. In asking whether a breach or compliance is material, it is necessary to ask: "material to what"? The obvious answer is: "material to the landlord and to the obligations of the tenant".

It is only too easy in a complex case for a party who is dissatisfied with the decision of an adjudicator to comb through the adjudicator's reasons and identify points upon which to present a challenge under the labels "excess of jurisdiction" or "breach of natural justice". The task of the adjudicator is to find an interim solution which meets the needs of the case. The need to have the "right" answer has been subordinated to the need to have an answer quickly.

No matter what the volume of material submitted or the sophistication of the argument deployed to support the allegation, the Home Secretary is entitled to certify if, after reviewing this material, he is reasonably and conscientiously satisfied that the allegation must clearly fail.

In most cases, indeed possibly in all cases, it is caused by the inhalation of asbestos fibres. The rule in its current form can be stated as follows: when a victim contracts mesothelioma each person who has, in breach of duty, been responsible for exposing the victim to a significant quantity of asbestos dust and thus creating a "material increase in risk" of the victim contracting the disease will be held to be jointly and severally liable for causing the disease.

Even if an adjudicator's breach of the rules of natural justice relates only to a material or actual or potentially important part of the decision, that can be enough to lead to the decision becoming wholly unenforceable essentially because the parties (or at least the losing party) and the Court can have no confidence in the fairness of the decision making process.