PRELIMINARY NEGOTIATIONS HELD TO BE INADMISSIBLE

Stroude v Beazer Homes Ltd [2005] EWCA Civ 265; [2005] All ER (D) 298 (Mar)

In Stroude v Beazer Homes Ltd [2005] EWCA Civ 265; [2005] All ER (D) 298 (Mar) the Court of Appeal held that preliminary negotiations between the parties were not admissible for the purpose of construing an agreement made pursuant to s106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. For this purpose it did not matter that the negotiations related, not to the s106 agreement itself, but to a separate (and ultimately abortive) collaboration agreement between the parties which was related to, but distinct from, the s106 agreement. The Court of Appeal emphasised that the reason for the exclusion of such evidence is a pragmatic one, namely that such evidence is generally not helpful in the resolution of the dispute between the parties.