Alan Balout & Anor v Dobro Dosle Pty Limited trading as as trustee for Amalgamated Investment Trust & Anor

2025/00215172

CONTRACT – Joseph Touma (the second respondent) and his company Dobro (the first respondent) claimed a $1 million success fee from Alan and Karen Balout (together, the appellants) for securing a buyer for their West Pennant Hills property above a $16 million threshold, based on agreements dated July and August 2014 – the appellants denied the claim, relying on a later Deed of Settlement signed on 13 July 2015, which the second respondent signed believing it was merely a receipt for repaying $180,000, based on Mr Balout’s representation that an inheritance had removed the need for a loan and allowed the property to be withdrawn from the market – on 1 July 2015, the appellants entered into an 18-month Put and Call Option Deed with Kirby Projects Pty Ltd to sell the property for $19.5 million, and the property was ultimately sold for $20.2 million in August 2019 – separately, the appellants sought $826,500 from the second respondent for alleged loans made between 2015 and 2016 – at first instance, the key issues included the enforceability of the agreements, alleged misleading and deceptive conduct, and whether the loans were genuine or repaid – the primary judge found that the respondents were entitled to a $1 million judgment, and awarded Mr Balout $54,500 in relation to the loan claim – whether the primary judge erred in finding that agreements in August and July were to be read together – whether the primary judge erred in the construction of the agreement made in August – the primary judge erred in finding that the second respondent did not become aware of the existence of the appellants’ entry into the Put and Call Option Deed until August 2015 – whether the primary judge erred in finding that the failure to disclose the existence of the Put and Call Option Deed was in the circumstances misleading or deceptive – whether the primary judge erred in attributing any misleading or deceptive conduct to the second appellant – whether the primary judge erred in finding that the first appellant had made a representation as to their inheritance – whether the primary judge erred in finding that it was "objectively implausible" that the second respondent would enter into the Deed of Settlement had he been aware of the existence of the Put and Call Option Deed.

Balout v Touma; Dobro Dosle Pty Limited t/as Amalgamated Investments Trust v Balout [2025] NSWSC 459