KSZH Pty Ltd v Birchwood Consolidated Pty Ltd (Receivers and Managers Appointed) (in Liquidation) [2026] WASC 409 — Corporations & Winding Up — Barrister AI
KSZH Pty Ltd v Birchwood Consolidated Pty Ltd (Receivers and Managers Appointed) (in Liquidation)
1The discretion under s 568F(1)(b) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) to vest disclaimed property in a person the court considers 'appropriate' is broad and evaluative, unfettered once the statutory preconditions are met; it does not require the applicant to establish an existing legal or equitable entitlement to the property, and relevant considerations include the applicant's historical connection with the property, the effect of not making a vesting order, the position of other interested parties, and what the applicant proposes to do with the property.
2A court order directing the conversion, transfer and amalgamation of identified land — where the manifest focus of each step is the change in legal status and disposition of the land itself — operates in rem and not merely in personam, binding strangers as well as parties, notwithstanding that further acts are needed to implement it.
3The purpose of the vesting power following disclaimer is to cause as little disturbance as possible to the rights and liabilities of third parties; a proposal that would frustrate prior court orders concerning the disclaimed property and primarily serve the cost-protection interests of the proposing party is inconsistent with that statutory purpose.
