Forthcoming
Article

Lawful Act Duress in Australia: An Argument for Good Faith

Anthony Gray
Bond University

Published 2026-04-08

Keywords

  • duress,
  • good faith,
  • Equity

Abstract

This article considers the doctrine of lawful act duress. It considers developments in the United Kingdom and Australia. Various doctrinal bases have been suggested for this doctrine. These include unconscionability, proportionality and good faith. The article critically considers each of these, before concluding that good faith is the best option. It provides specific examples of how good faith could assist in resolving cases of lawful act duress and provide different outcomes than those which would occur if other doctrines were utilised. Thus, it makes a substantive difference which of the doctrinal bases is chosen.