SCOTTS HEAD DEVELOPMENTS PTY LTD and ANOR v PALLISAR PTY LTD and ORS [1994] NSWCA 281

SCOTTS HEAD DEVELOPMENTS PTY LTD v PALLISAR PTY LTD

SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES COURT OF APPEAL

MAHONEY AP, POWELL JA and O' KEEFE CJ) COMM DIV 26 May 1994, 6 September 1994

[1994] NSWCA 281

COMPANIES — Proceedings between companies and third parties — necessity for company to carry on proceedings by solicitor and to be represented in Court by counsel or solicitor.

PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — Commencement and conduct of proceedings — Proceedings by company — Necessity for solicitor and/or counsel — Dispensing with.

Mahoney AP I agree with the orders proposed by Powell JA and generally with the reasons his Honour has given. In view of the complexity of the matter (the appeal papers alone comprise some 1110 pages) I shall add some short observations of my own.

When the proceeding commenced, Mr Dennis, Solicitor for Scotts Head Development Pty Ltd, appeared for that company, Mr Harrison appeared on his own behalf and Mr Hodgekiss appeared for the first and second respondents. The Court was informed that the other parties to the appeal had been served and, in various ways, have indicated that they do not wish to participate in it.

At the commencement of the hearing a question arose as to the procedure to be followed. Mr Dennis announced that he appeared for the company appellant, for which submissions in writing comprising some 86 pages of material had been filed. It was proposed, in effect, that the oral submissions to be made for the company would be made by Mr Harrison and that Mr Dennis would adopt those submissions as the oral submissions for the company. This, it was indicated, was the arrangement which had been made between Mr Dennis and Mr Harrison.

Mr Hodgekiss, for the respondents who are participating in the appeal ("the respondents") objected to such a procedure. In the circumstances, the Court gave consideration to whether Mr Harrison could in this way effectively appear for the appellant company. This, as it became clear from discussion, was what Mr Dennis and Mr Harrison sought to achieve.