PAKISTAN INTERNATIONAL AIRLINES CORPORATION v TIMES TRAVEL (UK) LTD

[2021] UKSC 40, Supreme Court, Lords Reed, Hodge, Lloyd-Jones, Kitchin and Burrows, 18 August 2021

Economic duress – Lawful act duress – Whether it is a ground on which a contract can be set aside

The principal issue in dispute before the Supreme Court was whether, and if so in what circumstance, a party can set aside a contract on the ground that it was entered into as a result of the other party to the contract threatening to do what it was lawfully entitled to do. The interest in the case for the construction industry lies in the principle established by the majority rather than the facts of the case.