Lina Socorro Obieta v Women's Housing Co Limited (No. 2) [2009] NSWDC 392

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Lina Socorro Obieta v Women's Housing Co Limited (No. 2) [2009] NSWDC 392

JUDGMENT DATE: 10 June 2009

JURISDICTION: District Court of New South Wales

JUDGMENT OF: Cogswell SC DCJ

DECISION: The application is dismissed.

CATCHWORDS: CIVIL LAW - appeal from decision of Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal NSW - application by plaintiff for judge to disqualify himself on grounds of apprehended bias - definition of 'bias'

LEGISLATION CITED: Consumer Trading and Tenancy Tribunal Act 2001 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005

Australian National Industries Limited v Spedley Securities Limited (in liq) (1992) 26 NSWLR 411 Ebner v Official Trustee and Bankruptcy (2001) 205 CLR 337 Johnson v Johnson (2000) 201 CLR 488 CASES CITED: Livesey v The New South Wales Bar Association (1983) 151 CLR 288 McGovern v Ku-Ring-Gai Council (2008) 251 ALR 558 R v Gough [1993] AC 646 Rex v Sussex Justices Ex Parte McCarthy [1924] I King's Bench 256 Vakauta v Kelly (1989) 167 CLR 568

PARTIES: Lina Socorro Obieta Women's Housing Co Limited

FILE NUMBER(S): 108/09

COUNSEL: Ms Obieta in person Mr Hewitt for the defendant

JUDGMENT

1. Lina Obieta has applied for me to disqualify myself from hearing her case. The ground of her application is apprehended bias. Her case, which commenced on 15 January 2009, is an appeal from a decision of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal New South Wales. The respondents to the appeal were the Tribunal and the Women's Housing Company Limited. The Tribunal has now been removed as a respondent.