Flip Out Thornton Pty Ltd v Flip Out - Trampoline Arena Franchises Pty Ltd [2023] NSWSC 1094

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Flip Out Thornton Pty Ltd v Flip Out - Trampoline Arena Franchises Pty Ltd [2023] NSWSC 1094 Hearing dates: 05 September 2023 Date of orders: 08 September 2023 Decision date: 08 September 2023 Jurisdiction: Equity - Commercial List Before: Stevenson J Decision: Further security for costs to be provided Catchwords: COSTS – security for costs – where proceedings funded from the outset by litigation funder – non-disclosure of external funding until recently despite two earlier applications for security for costs – merits of plaintiffs' case – whether impecuniosity attributable to matters complained of in proceedings – stultification – whether funder and plaintiffs' solicitor standing behind and likely to benefit from litigation – whether funder and solicitor unreasonably unwilling to provide security – whether commercially impracticable for plaintiffs to gain any advantage from any ability of funder or solicitor to provide security – whether security should be ordered where proceedings funded from the outset and funding agreement allegedly repudiated by funder and terminated by the plaintiffs – whether proceedings likely to be stultified in any event Legislation Cited: Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth), Sch 2 – Australian Consumer Law Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) Cases Cited: Bell Wholesale Co Limited v Gates Export Corporation (1984) 2 FCR 1; [1984] FCA 34 Dae Boong International Co Pty Ltd v Gray [2009] NSWCA 11 Equititrust Limited v Tucker [2020] QSC 269 General Trade Industries Pty Limited (in liquidation) v AGL Energy Limited [2023] FCA 556 Green (as liquidator of Arimco Mining Pty Ltd) v CGU Insurance Ltd [2008] NSWCA 148 Live Board Holdings Pty Ltd v Cody Live Pty Ltd [2017] NSWCA 302 LRSM Enterprise Pty Ltd v Zurich Australian Insurance Limited [2014] NSWCA 88 Murray John Carter v Ian Mehmet t/as ATF Ian G Mehmet Testamentary Trust [2021] NSWCA 32 Porter v Gordian Runoff Limited & Anor [2004] NSWCA 69 Category: Procedural rulings Parties: Flip Out Thornton Pty Ltd (First Plaintiff) Productivity Central Pty Ltd (Second Plaintiff) Kylye Baker (Third Plaintiff) David Levick (Fourth Plaintiff) Flip Out - Trampoline Arena Franchises Pty Ltd (First Defendant) Property Trading Pty Ltd (Second Defendant) Brent Grundy (Third Defendant) Kirk Grundy (Fourth Defendant) DC Strategy Pty Ltd (Fifth Defendant) Craig Caruana (Sixth Defendant) James Young (Seventh Defendant) Representation: Counsel: A J Byrne (Plaintiffs) J Lazarus SC with M Foran (First to Fourth Defendants) J Shakenovsky (solicitor) (Fifth and Seventh Defendants)