Sumpter v Hedges (1898) 1 QB 673 Court of Appeal

The claimant agreed to build two houses and stables for the defendant. It was agreed that £565 would be payable on completion. The claimant commenced performance and then ran out of money and was unable to complete. He had performed just over half of the contract. The defendant completed the work himself. The claimant sought to recover £333 representing the value of the work he had completed. He argued that in completing the work himself, the defendant had thereby accepted partial performance and prevented the claimant from completing the contract.

Held:

The claimant's action failed. The court held that the defendant had no choice but to accept partial performance as he was left with a half completed house on his land.

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