Bundock and Forbes were a yachting crew competing for selection as members of the Australian Olympic Sailing Team to sail in the Tornado class event at the 1996 Olympics. The Tornado class requires a crew of two: helmsman and forward hand. Bundock and the second defendant ("Booth") were helmsmen and Forbes and the Third Defendant ("Landenberger") were forward hands.
Forbes and Bundock and Booth and Anderson competed at the world championships and scored points according to the Olympic selection criteria. Landenberger didn’t. After the championship, Booth teamed up with Landenberger.
The Australian Yachting Federation ("AYF") decided that Booth should retain the points he received in the world championship even though he had a new crew member.
Forbes and Bundock and Booth and Landenberger competed at the next world championships where Forbes and Bundock beat Booth and Landenberger, however due the accumulation of points, Booth and Landenberger won Olympic selection, Forbes and Bundock didn’t.
Forbes and Bundock challenged the Australian Yachting Federation selection of Booth and Landenberger in the Olympic yachting team. They also claimed monetary damages.
Forbes and Bundock claimed that the selection criteria for the Olympic Gmes team was, in fact, a contract, and that the AYF had breached the contract by not following their selection process to the leter.
The Court held that a contract could not be inferred from the facts because of the essential elements of contract, namely offer and acceptance were missing.
Similarly, the Court found that there was no intention to create legal relations. This is another essential element of contract.
The Court concluded that the appropriate remedy would be one which required an order for compensation whereby the AYF was to pay Forbes and Bundock any additional or wasted expenses. Furthermore the Court was satisfied that there is no injury to third parties who are innocent in the matter, such as Booth and Landenberger, which would he the case if their Olympic nomination were denied.
Booth and Landenberger clearly did rely upon the AYF’s ruling as to how it would allocate points following the split up of Booth and his former crew member.