ABSTRACT
A contract which contravenes a statute, bye-law or statutory regulat ion is illegal. The parties to such a contract do not necessarily c o m m i t a cr ime, but the contract is tainted in the eyes o f the civi l courts, which as a general rule w i l l refuse to have anything to do w i t h enforcing i t :
The courts have refused to enforce claims by contractors for the price of works done without the building licence required by war-time legislation, even where
b the employer did not wish to rely on the illegality as a defence.
