Great Wall Resources Pty Ltd (in Liquidation) v Davidovic Pty Ltd ACN 068 948 167 [2011] NSWSC 660

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Great Wall Resources Pty Ltd (in Liquidation) v Davidovic Pty Ltd ACN 068 948 167 [2011] NSWSC 660 Hearing dates: Monday 2 May 2011 Decision date: 30 June 2011 Jurisdiction: Equity Division Before: Macready AsJ Decision: Orders 1 and 2 made in the plaintiff's notice of motion filed 25 March 2011 Catchwords: PROCEDURE - civil - judgments and orders - payment out of court - corporations - relation back date - unfair preferences - liquidator sought payment out of court of money held in court as security for production of documents - document were the subject of a solicitor's lien - payment into court made during relation back period - whether the payment into court was an unfair preference that was voidable against the applicant liquidator - characterisation of solicitor's lien as possessory meant that debt owing to solicitors was an unsecured debt notwithstanding solicitor's lien - consideration of two classes of solicitor's lien Legislation Cited: Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) Legal Profession Act 2004 Cases Cited: Barratt v Gough-Thomas [1951] Ch 242 Barrister and Solicitor, In Re a(1979) 40 FLR 26 Bechara t/as Bechara &Cov Atie & Anor [2005] NSWCA 268Colour Point Pty Limited v Blacktown Concrete Services Pty Ltd v Ultra Refurbishing & Construction Pty Ltd (in liq) (1998) 43 NSWLR 484 Markby's Communication Group Pty Limited [1998] FCA 1516 Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Ltd v Colonial Financiers of Australia Pty Ltd (1972) 20 FLR 220) Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Re [2009] NSWSC 81 Curling v Long (1797) 1 B&P 634 Deputy Commissioner of Taxation v Great Wall Resources Pty Limited (Controller Appointed) [2010] FCA 1509 Domson Pty Ltd v Zhu [2005] NSWSC 1070 Equuscorp Pty Ltd v Wilmoth, Field Warne (a firm) [2006] VSCA 123 Jackson v Richards [2005] NSWSC 630 Johns v Law Society of New South Wales [1982] 2 NSWLR 1 Magnamain Investments Pty Ltd v Baker Johnson Lawyers [2008] QSC 245 Moseley v Cressey's Co (1865) LR 1 Eq 405 Overseas Aviation Engineering (GB) Ltd, Re [1962] 3 All ER 12 Rafeletos v Great Wall Resources Pty Limited (No 3) [2010] FCA 941 Rodick v Gandell (1852) 1 DM&G 763Swiss Bank Corporation v Lloyds Bank Ltd [1982] AC 584 Secure Funding Pty Ltd v Bettini [2011] NSWSC 557 Tyneside Property Management Pty Ltd v Hammersmith Management Pty Ltd [2011] NSWSC 22 White v Bini [2003] FCA 669 Woodings v James (1996) 14 ACLC 1555 Texts Cited: G Dal Pont, Lawyers' Professional Responsibility, 3rd ed (2006) E Sykes, The law of securities: an account of the law pertaining to securities over real and personal property under the laws of the Australian states, 3rd ed (1978) Category: Principal judgment Parties: Plaintiff - David G Young as liquidator of Great Wall Resources Pty Ltd (in Liquidation)