Austin Corp Pty Ltd v Blanford [2010] NSWSC 964

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : Austin Corp Pty Ltd v Blanford [2010] NSWSC 964

HEARING DATE(S) : 16/08/10

JUDGMENT DATE : 16 August 2010

JURISDICTION : Equity

JUDGMENT OF : White J

EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE : 16 August 2010

1. Make order 1 of the originating process. DECISION : 2. Order that the plaintiff pay the defendant's costs. 3. The exhibits may be returned after 28 days.

CATCHWORDS : CORPORATIONS – application to set aside statutory demand – common ground that statutory demand should be set aside – COSTS – determination of appropriate costs orders – whether to award indemnity costs against defendant – relevant considerations in statutory demand proceedings – where statutory demand based on judgment debt – where grounds for setting aside statutory demand not adjudicated – where plaintiff contended that defendant obtained default judgment and served statutory demand because induced by defendant to believe that action would not be taken without plaintiff's knowledge – where plaintiff disputed debt based on alleged compromise agreement or existence of valid offsetting claim – plaintiff's failure to repay money under alleged compromise agreement and to offer to pay remainder of debt into court from outset put defendant to unnecessary expense in defending application – plaintiff to pay defendant's costs

LEGISLATION CITED : Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW) Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)

CATEGORY : Procedural and other rulings

Jem Number Four Pty Ltd v Southern Cross Construction (NSW) Pty Ltd [2006] NSWSC 602 Gee Ha Pty Ltd v Dera Developments Pty Ltd [2007] NSWSC 95 CASES CITED : Re Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs; ex parte Lai Qin (1997) 186 CLR 622 Soudan Lane Pty Ltd v Glen Bradshaw t/as Pacific Coast Digital [2007] NSWSC 772 Eumina Investment Pty Ltd v Westpac Banking Corporation (1998) 84 FCR 454 Midas Management Pty Ltd v Equator Communications Pty Ltd [2007] NSWSC 759; (2007) 25 ACLC 1038