Catchwords

INSURANCE - GENERAL - POLICIES OF INSURANCE - MISREPRESENTATION AND NON-DISCLOSURE - OTHER MATTERS - where respondent made untrue statements in answer to questions in her proposal for life insurance - whether untrue statements were statements a reasonable person could be expected to know would be relevant to the decision of the insurer and therefore not misrepresentations by virtue of s 26(2) Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth)

INSURANCE - GENERAL - POLICIES OF INSURANCE - MISREPRESENTATION AND NON-DISCLOSURE - STATUTORY REMEDIES - where s 29(3) Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) gives right of avoidance where "the insurer would not have been prepared to enter into a contract…on any terms" - where appellant would not have entered into a contract of insurance on the date contract entered into had misrepresentations not been made but would have deferred decision - whether sufficient for insurer to avoid the contract under s 29(3)

EVIDENCE - BURDEN OF PROOF, PRESUMPTIONS, AND WEIGHT AND SUFFICIENCY OF EVIDENCE - GENERALLY - ONUS OF PROOF - OTHER MATTERS - where s 29(3) Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) confers conditional right on insurer to avoid contract - where proof of fulfilment of condition is peculiarly within the knowledge of the insurer - whether insurer bore onus of proof - whether onus discharged