Summary judgment — sale and purchase agreement — unpaid deposit — Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 ss 34, 35, 42 & 49 — Interest on Money Claims Act 2016 — Mana v Fleming [2007] NZCA 324. The plaintiff sought summary judgment for the balance of an unpaid deposit ($130,000) in respect of a commercial property sale, as well as interest at 12 per cent on that sum and further interest on the balance of the unpaid purchase price, $4.42 million, till the date of resale. The plaintiff had cancelled the agreement for non-payment of the deposit at the date of settlement but did not serve a settlement notice as it was entitled to do. The total claim was for $358,700, but brought down to $350,000 to fall within the District Court's jurisdiction. However, while the defendant took no formal step to oppose the claim, the issue for the Court was which of two possible contractual interpretations should be applied. The plaintiff's most favourable interpretation (the broad interpretation) would entitle it to $350,000. The less favourable interpretation (the strict interpretation) would entitle it to $233,045.47. Under the agreement, the strict interpretation was that the agreement did not provide for interest to be payable beyond the date of cancellation unless a settlement notice has first been served. The plaintiff argued that to apply this standard would put it in a worse position simply because it relied on the defendant's failure to comply with the deposit notice in order to achieve a quick resale. The Judge, having reviewed the contract and relevant case law, held that while the broad interpretation had considerable practical and equitable weight, the strict interpretation was the correct one, as the plaintiff cancelled the contract for non-payment but failed to satisfy the threshold requirement of service of a settlement notice. The defendant was ordered to pay $233,045.47, with interest to be calculated under the Interest on Money Claims Act 2016, and costs on a 2B basis of $4,717 (plus $340 in disbursements). Judgment Date: 16 May 2019.