Campara v Australian Islamic Society of Bosnia Herzegovina Inc [2020] NSWSC 1739

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Campara v Australian Islamic Society of Bosnia Herzegovina Inc [2020] NSWSC 1739 Hearing dates: 26 and 30 November 2020 Date of orders: 26 November and 4 December 2020 Decision date: 04 December 2020 Jurisdiction: Equity - Corporations List Before: Gleeson J Decision: 26 November 2020 (1) Declares that the displacement of the Second Plaintiff on or around 11 March 2020 from the Committee of the Association was invalid. (2) Declares that the displacement of the Second Plaintiff on or around 1 October 2020 from the Association was invalid. (3) Declares that the displacements of the First Plaintiff, Third Plaintiff, Fourth Plaintiff and Fifth Plaintiff on or around 4 October 2020 from the Committee of the Association were invalid. (4) Declares that the appointments of the Eighth Defendant, Ninth Defendant, Tenth Defendant and Eleventh Defendant on or around 4 October 2020 to the Committee of the Association were invalid. (5) Order that order 2 of the orders made by the Court on 13 November 2020 be varied as follows: (a) Order 2(a) be varied to provide that Mr Kimber SC will also decide the time and place (venue) to hold the AGM. (b) The date to give notice of the AGM referred to in Order 2(b) be extended to on or before Monday, 30 November 2020. (c) Each of the Secretary on behalf of those whose interests align with the Defendants', and the President on behalf of those who interests align with the Plaintiffs', are to prove a written submission of no longer than 2 pages identifying what they consider to be the appropriate time and place (venue) to hold the AGM to Mr Kimber SC by 12pm, Friday 27 November 2020. (6) Order that, save for the variations in Order 5 above, orders 2, 3 and 4 made by the Court in these proceedings on 13 November 2020 remain unaffected and binding on the parties. (7) Order that, subject to order (6) above, all other orders made by the Court in these proceedings are otherwise set aside. 4 December 2020 (1) The Court orders that there be no order for costs to the intent that each of the plaintiffs and the second to eleventh defendants bear his own costs of the proceedings. Catchwords: ASSOCIATIONS AND CLUBS – incorporated associations – meetings – where disputes concerning internal management – where committee resolved to remove several committee members – where committee resolved to expel member of association – whether contraventions of the constitution of the association – whether resolutions invalid – whether appropriate and within power to make declarations by consent – resolutions declared invalid COSTS – Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) s 98 – Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW), r 42.1 – where both plaintiffs and defendants made various offers of settlement – where it transpired that the only issue was costs – where no final determination on the merits – no order as to costs Legislation Cited: Associations Incorporation Act 2009 (NSW), ss 26, 96 Associations Incorporation Regulation 2016 (NSW), reg 18 Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), s 1322 Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW), ss 56(2), 98(1) Supreme Court Act 1970 (NSW), s 75 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW), r 42.1 Cases Cited: BMI Limited v Federated Clerks Union of Australia (NSW Branch) & Ors (1983) 51 ALR 401 Bokhari v Bokhari [2014] NSWSC 1474 Re Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs (Cth); Ex parte Lai Qin (1997) 186 CLR 622; [1997] HCA 6 Foster v Jododex Australia Pty Ltd (1972) 175 CLR 421 McClelland v Burning Palms Surf Life Saving Club [2002] NSWSC 470 Nichols v NFS Agribusiness Pty Ltd [2018] NSWCA 84 Price v Price [2020] NSWCA 312 Wallersteiner v Moir [1974] 1 WLR 991 Wright v Apthorpe [2020] NSWCA 300 Texts Cited: Shackleton on the Law and Practice of Meetings (15th ed., Sweet & Maxwell, 2020) Category: Principal judgment Parties: Amir Campara (First plaintiff) Hasan Alijagic (Second plaintiff) Hasan Garibovic (Third plaintiff) Enver Hot (Fourth plaintiff) Admir Mutapcic (Fifth plaintiff) Australian Islamic Society of Bosnia Herzegovina (First defendant) Jasmin Bekric (Second defendant) Asim Begic (Third defendant) Aldin Becic (Fourth defendant) Albin Hasanovic (Fifth defendant) Semir Korjenic (Sixth defendant) Semir Islamovic (Seventh defendant) Dzvedet Alic (Eighth defendant) Zijad Haracic (Ninth defendant) Huska Kazic (Tenth defendant) Novalija Hodzic (Eleventh defendant) Representation: Counsel: T J Dixon / H Pararajasingham (Plaintiffs) D Allen (Second to Eleventh Defendants)