... estoppel was developed by Lord Denning1 in Central London Property Trust Ltd. v. High Trees House Ltd. [1947] K.B. 1302. Since then this case became an exemplary one for cases relevant to promissory estoppel. In this case High Trees House Ltd obtained the tenancy of a block of flats in 1937 for a ground rent of ?2500 per year. Unfortunately the luftwaffe played havoc with occupancy rates in central London after the outbreak of WW2. In January 1940 the plaintiff wrote to the High Trees confirming a reduction in rent to ?1250. In September 1945 the receiver of the plaintiff company wrote saying that the rent must be paid at the full amount and demanding arrears. The conclusion of Lord Denning was: the full rent was payable from the time that the flats became fully occupied in early 1945, but that Central London could not go back on their promise ...

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