Rinehart v Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd [2019] HCA 13

HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

KIEFEL CJ, GAGELER, NETTLE, GORDON AND EDELMAN JJ

Matter No S143/2018

BIANCA HOPE RINEHART & ANOR APPELLANTS

AND

HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD & ORS RESPONDENTS

Matter No S144/2018

BIANCA HOPE RINEHART & ANOR APPELLANTS

AND

GEORGINA HOPE RINEHART (IN HER PERSONAL CAPACITY AND AS TRUSTEE OF THE HOPE MARGARET HANCOCK TRUST AND AS TRUSTEE OF THE HFMF TRUST) & ORS RESPONDENTS

Rinehart v Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd Rinehart v Rinehart [2019] HCA 13 8 May 2019 S143/2018 & S144/2018

ORDER

Matter No S143/2018

1. The appeal be dismissed with costs.

2. The third party companies' application for special leave to cross-appeal be allowed.

3. The cross-appeal be treated as instituted and heard instanter and allowed.

4. Orders 5, 6 and 8 of the orders of the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia made on 15 December 2017 be set aside and, in their place, it is ordered that:

"5. The orders of the Court made on 26 May 2016 be set aside and in lieu thereof order:

(a) that the proceeding brought in the Court by the applicants being NSD 1124 of 2014 be stayed under s 8(1) of the Commercial Arbitration Act 2010 (NSW) (CA Act) pending any arbitral reference between the parties or until further order, save and except for those claims made against Mulga Downs Investments Pty Ltd; and

(b) the first and second applicants to the main proceedings (being the first and second respondents to the appeals) pay the costs of the moving parties to the interlocutory application filed on 3 November 2014 in proceedings NSD 1124 of 2014 in connection with paragraph 9 thereof and the costs of the moving parties to the interlocutory application filed on 24 December 2014 in those proceedings, subject to Mulga Downs Investments Pty Ltd paying the costs related to the question of whether it is a party to the arbitration agreement pursuant to s 2 of the CA Act.