Lina Socorro Obieta v Women's Housing Co Limited [2009] NSWDC 201

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Lina Socorro Obieta v Women's Housing Co Limited [2009] NSWDC 201

JUDGMENT DATE: 10 July 2009

JURISDICTION: District Court of New South Wales

JUDGMENT OF: Cogswell SC DCJ

CATCHWORDS: CIVIL LAW - application for stay of proceedings until conclusion of appeal of judgment of Judicial Registrar removing party to the proceedings - joining tribunal to appeal from its decision

LEGISLATION CITED: Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Act 2001 s 67(3)

CASES CITED: Dobell v Blue Haven Pools and Spas Pty Ltd [2009] NSWCA 77

PARTIES: Lina Socorro Obieta v Women's Housing Co Limited

FILE NUMBER(S): 108/09

SOLICITORS: Ms Obieta (in person) Blake Dawson

JUDGMENT

1. I have delivered a judgment on the plaintiff's notice of motion applying for me to disqualify myself from the further hearing of this matter on the grounds of apprehended bias. I have dismissed that application. Ms Obieta asks me to stay further proceedings in the appeal until she has an opportunity to appeal to the Court of Appeal, not from my judgment but from a judgment of the Judicial Registrar.

2. On 29 May 2009 the Judicial Registrar removed a party to these proceedings. The party was the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal New South Wales. It had been named as a respondent to these proceedings, along with Women's Housing Company Limited. The Tribunal applied successfully to the Judicial Registrar who, as I said, made that order. It is from that decision that Ms Obieta is appealing to the Court of Appeal. It is in reliance upon that appeal that she asks me to stay further proceedings in the appeal to me from the Tribunal.

3. It is of some importance, in my opinion, that before being removed as a party the Tribunal had filed a submitting appearance, submitting to all orders sought by the plaintiff, except as to costs. It seems to me, therefore, that even if Ms Obieta is successful in the Court of Appeal and the Tribunal is restored as a party, it proposes to make no meaningful contribution to the disposal of the appeal to me from the Tribunal.