Generally, in a commercial context, the provision in a contract of an unfettered discretion for one party means just that: the party with the benefit of the discretion can choose exactly how to exercise it.
Recent case law in the employment arena, however, has established, not for the first time, that an employment contract is a special type of contract. Although all employment contracts are underpinned by the common law of contract, it is now clear that an employer’s discretion is not as unfettered as students of the common law may presume.
