Charmyne Palavi v. Radio 2UE Sydney Pty Limited [2010] NSWDC 332

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Charmyne Palavi v. Radio 2UE Sydney Pty Limited [2010] NSWDC 332

HEARING DATE(S): 13 September 2010

JUDGMENT DATE: 9 November 2010

JURISDICTION: Civil

JUDGMENT OF: Colefax SC DCJ

DECISION: Strike out paragraphs 3(a) and (b)(i) of Statement of Claim

CATCHWORDS: Practice and Procedure – Discovery – Contents of Lists – Failure by a party to comply with orders for discovery – Circumstances in which such a failure will result in a stay or dismissal or strike out of the proceedings – Abuse of process - Practice and Procedure – Interlocutory judgments – Review by a primary Judge of interlocutory rulings made by another Judge in the same proceedings - Practice and Procedure – Defamation List – Limits on further interlocutory applications to be entertained after hearing date vacated

LEGISLATION CITED: Civil Procedure Act 2005 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules

Brimaud v Honeyset Instant Printing Pty Limited (1988) 217 ALR 14 CASES CITED: Clarke v State of New South Wales [2006] NSWSC 673 Nominal Defendant v Manning (2000) 50 NSWLR 13 National Parks & Wildlife Service v Peirson (2002) 55 NSWLR 315

PARTIES: Charmyne Palavi Radio 2UE Sydney Pty Limited

FILE NUMBER(S): 336332 of 2009

COUNSEL: Mr. R. McHugh SC and Ms. Sibtain for the Defendant Mr. Evatt and Mr. R. Rasmussen for the Plaintiff

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT Introduction:

1. Before the court is an application by the defendant in a Notice of Motion dated 19 August 2010 to strike out the Statement of Claim by reason of the plaintiff's alleged continued (and continuing) failure to comply with orders for discovery – in particular regarding her mobile phone or phones. 2. The Statement of Claim was filed 27 July 2009. In it the plaintiff seeks damages for certain alleged defamatory words published of and concerning her by the defendant on 14 May 2009. 3. Specifically, the plaintiff pleaded: "3. The matter complained of and set out in paragraph 2 above in its natural and ordinary meaning conveyed or was understood to have conveyed the following imputations: (a) the Plaintiff is a slut (paragraph 17); (b) (i) the Plaintiff is a Madam (14); OR (ii) the Plaintiff runs a brothel (14) (c) the Plaintiff puts NRL players and underage girls together for sex (18);