NSW District Court

DEFAMATION — pleading and practice — amendment application — de facto applications to strike out and dismiss — pleading of facts to sustain serious harm element — whether material facts for causation adequately identified — pleading of…

PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — application for the stay of a final hearing pending an appeal — principles applicable

GUARANTEE AND INDEMNITY — Contract of guarantee — action to recover debt from guarantor after the defaulting party went into liquidation — whether the defendant raises an equitable defence or a set-off — liability under the terms of the…

MENTAL HEALTH — Criminal proceedings — wound with intent to murder — special verdict where prosecutor and defence agree that defence of mental health or cognitive impairment available — psychotic disorder — Court satisfied that defence…

CONTRACTS — formation — intention to create legal relations — alleged oral agreement — whether consensus reached capable of forming a binding contract — CONTRACTS — existence of contract where plaintiff alleged binding agreement arising…

PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — Plaintiff’s recusal application — Procedural unfairness — Apprehended bias — Actual bias — Self-represented litigant

CRIME — SENTENCING — One count common assault committed while inmate in custody — Serving lengthy sentence for murder — Section 5 threshold just met — General and specific deterrence weighty matters for all crimes in custody but…

COSTS — application for costs by defendant where the plaintiffs have been partially successful — whether it was reasonable for the plaintiffs not to accept a Calderbank offer

PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — application to vacate a final hearing date with an estimate of four weeks — principles applicable — factors to be considered in the exercise of discretion

COURTS AND JUDGES — application for recusal — apprehended bias — after judgment was reserved, Court issued to the parties a proposed list of facts which it indicated it was inclined to take into account as common knowledge or legislative…

CRIMINAL LAW — appeals and reviews — public order offences — Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), s 93ZA(1) — display of Nazi symbol — display in course of pro-Palestinian protest — prohibition on the public display of a Nazi symbol ‘without reasonable…

CIVIL PROCEDURE — notice to produce — application to set aside — legal professional privilege — under common law — under Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) — dominant purpose — advice privilege — litigation privilege — where plaintiff seeks…

CONTRACT — Release — Defence based on a release — CONTRACTS — Remedies — Liquidated damages — Debt — COSTS — Solicitor/Client — Costs agreement — COSTS — Solicitor/Client — Recovery — Bill of costs

CONTRACTS — Terms — claim for payment for work performed under two contracts — disagreement as to terms of both contracts as to price — whether failure of consideration established — whether one of the contracts was terminated — whether…

TAXATION — director penalty liabilities — PAYG withholding amounts — personal income tax liabilities — administrative penalties for failure to lodge — running balance account deficit debt — General Interest Charge — ‘all reasonable steps’…

COSTS — application for indemnity costs in relation to the whole of the proceedings — allegations made in previous proceedings which were withdrawn — whether there are exceptional circumstances — whether the plaintiffs’ case was without…

SENTENCING — One count of recklessly destroying a home by fire — Aggravating factors — Use of accelerant — The home of the victims entirely destroyed — Mitigating factors — Offender suffers from significant mental health issues — Direct…

CRIME — SENTENCING — Supply prohibited drugs — Possession of firearms — Extensive criminal history aggravating factor — Offender on parole and a Community Corrections Order at time of offending — [name withheld] and [name withheld]…

CIVIL PROCEDURE — plaintiff’s strike-out application and application for judgment — UCPR r 14.28 — where Defence consists of non-admissions, bare denials and formulaic traversals — defendant’s repeated non-compliance with orders — where…

CONSUMER LAW — Misleading or deceptive conduct — alleged contravention of s 18 of the Australian Consumer Law (NSW) by a car dealer by the making of false and misleading representations in an advertisement offering a classic car for sale…

COSTS — Costs assessment — Determination — Review/appeal

CIVIL PROCEDURE — Subpoenas — legitimate forensic purpose — abuse of process — notice of motion to set aside — “apparent relevance” — reasonable basis for supposing that material will likely add “in some way or another” to the relevant…

DEFAMATION — Plaintiff failed to establish grounds to make order for suppression or non-publication of judgment.

CRIMINAL LAW — prosecution — work health and safety — duty of persons undertaking business — duty of employers — risk of death or serious injury — injury to worker — category 1 offence — category 2 offence for officer — s 155(5) offence…

Practice and procedure — Judgments and orders — Amendment and correction of orders — Practice and procedure — Judgments and orders — Slip rule — UCPR r 36.16(3A) and (3B) — Practice and procedure — Default judgment — Confirmation of…

BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION — Validity of a Payment Claim under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act — Where a Deed of Amendment expressed termination of lump-sum contract and parties agreed to enter a cost-plus…

CIVIL PROCEDURE — Amendment — Where plaintiff seeks to amend amended Statement of Claim — Where plaintiff has advanced four iterations of proposed Amended Statement of Claim — Claim now seeks to join the operator airline (as carrier and…

MERCANTILE LAW — commercial loan agreements — [name withheld] clause — default in repayment — default judgment entered against defendants at interlocutory stage — dismissal of cross claim by defendants alleging penalty term…

CIVIL — COSTS — Calderbank offers — Whether ‘walk away’ offer to have same effect as Calderbank offer — Whether respondent had enough information to reasonably be expected to accept any of applicant’s offers

COURTS AND JUDGES — ACTUAL AND APPREHENDED BIAS — Application for recusal — On multiple grounds — Combination of actual and apprehended bias — Application refused — Suggestion in Re Green Estate Australia Pty Ltd [2026] NSWSC 1028 that…

CRIME — Apprehended violence orders — Appeal against dismissal of Local Court application for an apprehended violence order — Application for leave to give fresh evidence on the appeal — Decision taken by applicant in trial below to not…

CIVIL — negligence — psychological injury — liability of employer for criminal actions of a third party — CIVIL — negligence — liability of employer to employee working in retail — employee injured as a consequence of customer aggression…

TORTS — Trespass to the person — False imprisonment — detention by a police officer insisting on compliance with a power to seize the plaintiff’s firearms that the officer did not have — officer conceded that the plaintiff was not free to…

CIVIL PROCEDURE — Abuse of Process — Where prior application for the same relief dismissed — Whether present application is an abuse of process — CIVIL PROCEDURE — Irregularity — Where defendant alleges statement of claim not served…

BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION — Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 (NSW) — allegations of breach of s 37 in the course of constructing a house and in the course of performing remedial building work pursuant to an NCAT work order…

CONTRACTS — Breach of contract — Consequences of breach — Assessment of damages — where claim exceeds the monetary jurisdictional limit of the District Court — NEGLIGENCE — allegations of common law negligence and of breach of statutory…

Leave to continue against company in liquidation — Protective terms

CRIME — SENTENCING — Two counts of take part in manufacture or production of prohibited drug (methylamphetamine) against s 24(1) Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act — Closely related Form 1 matters — Offending well-below midrange of objective…

CONTRACT — accord and satisfaction — agreement by parties for payment by instalments to Plaintiff — whether subsequent agreement partly oral and partly in writing amounts to accord and satisfaction of claim under earlier agreement for…

CIVIL PROCEDURE — Consolidation of proceedings — Joint hearings — Factual cross-over between proceedings — Risk of inconsistent judgments if heard separately — Consolidation ordered

TORTS — work injury damages claim — DAMAGES — compensatory damages assessed at $871,284 — judgment for plaintiff in the assessed net sum of $315,438.30 after offset of past weekly workers’ compensation payments of $555,845.70

CIVIL — Injurious falsehood — Australian Consumer Law — Allegation of forgery of signature on guarantee for finance of property — Context of marriage breakdown between P and D — Not open on balance of probabilities that D, as opposed to…

CRIMINAL LAW — prosecution — work health and safety — duty of persons undertaking business — risk of death or serious injury — SENTENCE — objective seriousness — mitigating factors — aggravating factors — plea of guilty — general…

LEASES AND TENANCIES — where Plaintiff leases premises to First Defendant for a term of 5 years — where Second Defendant guarantees the performance of the First Defendant’s obligations under the lease — LEASES AND TENANCIES — rent and…

TAXATION — director penalty liabilities — PAYG withholding amounts — assessed net amount under the A New Tax Systems (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (Cth) — where the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (Cth) provides that allegations in…

PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — strike out of paragraph in Defence pleading a limitation defence — Defence filed in response to Amended Statement of Claim