Gamilaroi Boomerangs Sports Aboriginal Corporation v New England Group 19 [1999] NSWSC 204

New South Wales Supreme Court CITATION : Gamilaroi Boomerangs Sports Aboriginal Corporation v New England Group 19 [1999] NSWSC 204 CURRENT JURISDICTION : Equity FILE NUMBER(S) : 1396 of 1999 HEARING DATE(S) : 1 March 1999 JUDGMENT DATE : 17 March 1999

Gamilaroi Boomerangs Sports Aboriginal Corporation (Plaintiff) PARTIES : Members of New England Group 19 (First Defendant) Country Rugby League of New South Wales Incorporated Reg No. Y0717232 (Second Defendant) JUDGMENT OF : Windeyer J at 1

COUNSEL : Mr. M. Dempsey (Plaintiff) Mr. B. Gross Q.C. with him Mr. H. Bauer (First and Second Defendants) SOLICITORS : Stuart Percy & Associates (Plaintiff) Colin W. Love & Co (First and Second Defendants) CATCHWORDS : ASSOCIATIONS - Country Rugby League - exclusion of the plaintiff from competition - power of the Boundary and Competition Committee to make a resolution altering boundaries of competition to exclude the plaintiff from the competition and not to include them in any other competition - no power to exclude plaintiff on the basis of conduct DECISION :

- 7 - IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES EQUITY DIVISION

WINDEYER J

WEDNESDAY 17 MARCH 1999

1396/99 GAMILAROI BOOMERANGS SPORTS ABORIGINAL CORPORATION v MEMBERS OF NEW ENGLAND GROUP 19 AND ANOR

JUDGMENT on separate question

General Outline 1 The Gamilaroi Boomerangs Sports Aboriginal Corporation has for some years fielded a team, which I will call the Moree Boomerangs, in the Country Rugby League Competition and more recently in what is known as the New England Group 19 Competition conducted under the auspices of the Country Rugby League of New South Wales Incorporated (CRL). 2 A resolution of the third defendant, if valid, has had the effect of excluding the plaintiff from the Group 19 Competition and according to the CRL from any competition conducted under its auspices. 3 On 17 February 1999 I ordered the following question be tried as a separate question: Whether the third defendant had power pursuant to the constitution of the second defendant to make the decisions purported to be made on 3 February 1999: (a) to alter the boundaries of the Group 19 competition to exclude the Moree Boomerangs;