UK - English High Court considers “relational contracts” and implied duty of good faith

In Bates and others v Post Office Ltd [2019] EWHC 606 (QB), the English High Court held that the contracts between the defendant and the claimants were relational contracts, meaning there was an implied duty of good faith in the agreements between the parties. On that basis, the defendant Post Office had not been entitled to act in a way that would be considered commercially unacceptable by reasonable and honest people. The court undertook an analysis of “relational contracts” and identified a non-exhaustive list of characteristics which might indicate where one exists.