Walton v ACN 004 410 833 Limited (formerly Arrium Limited) (in liquidation) [2022] HCA 3

HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

KIEFEL CJ,

GAGELER, KEANE, EDELMAN AND STEWARD JJ

MICHAEL THOMAS WALTON & ANOR APPELLANTS

AND

ACN 004 410 833 LIMITED (FORMERLY ARRIUM

LIMITED) (IN LIQUIDATION) & ORS RESPONDENTS

Walton v ACN 004 410 833 Limited (formerly Arrium Limited) (in liquidation)

[2022] HCA 3

Dates of Hearing: 6 & 7 October 2021

Date of Judgment: 16 February 2022

S20/2021

ORDER

1. Appeal allowed.

2. Set aside orders 3, 4 and 5 made by the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales on 30 July 2020 and, in their place, order that the appeal be dismissed with costs.

3. The first and second respondents pay the appellants' costs of and incidental to the appeal, including the application for special leave to appeal.

On appeal from the Supreme Court of New South Wales

Representation

N C Hutley SC and J Shepard for the appellants (instructed by Banton Group)

M A Izzo SC with T E O'Brien for the first respondent (instructed by Arnold Bloch Leibler)

J K Kirk SC with A B Emmerson for the second respondent (instructed by Ashurst)

Submitting appearance for the third respondent

Notice: This copy of the Court's Reasons for Judgment is subject to formal revision prior to publication in the Commonwealth Law Reports.

CATCHWORDS

Walton v ACN 004 410 833 Limited (formerly Arrium Limited) (in liquidation)

Companies – Winding up – Mandatory examination of persons about examinable affairs of corporation – Application to set aside summons for examination – Purposes for which an officer or provisional liquidator may be summoned for examination about corporation's examinable affairs pursuant to s 596A of Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) – Where appellants were shareholders of corporation in liquidation – Where appellants authorised by Australian Securities and Investments Commission to make application pursuant to s 596A of Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) – Where appellants applied for summons for purpose of investigating potential personal claims in capacity as shareholders against former directors and auditors of corporation – Where Registrar issued summons to former director to attend court for examination – Whether appellants' purpose foreign to purpose of s 596A of Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) – Whether examination an abuse of process.