Luen Fook Tong Incorporated & Ors v Daphne Lowe & Ors [2011] NSWSC 1004

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Luen Fook Tong Incorporated & Ors v Daphne Lowe & Ors [2011] NSWSC 1004 Hearing dates: 1, 2 & 3 June 2011 Decision date: 31 August 2011 Jurisdiction: Equity Division Before: Slattery J Decision: The first plaintiff's committee of management is presently comprised of the persons elected to that committee on 26 April 2009. The elections for the committee of management held on 1 May 2011 were invalid, as were the elections held on 3 January 2010. Directions given for consequential relief and to facilitate the holding of future elections of the first plaintiff Association. Catchwords: ASSOCIATIONS AND CLUBS - officers, trustees, servants and committees - association incorporated under Associations Incorporation Act 2009 - whether the Association's present committee of management is a group of persons elected in April 2009 or another group of persons elected in May 2011 - issues of construction as to whether the Association's constitution requires the committee of management elected in 2009 to retire by 31 December 2009 - and whether general meetings called on 3 January 2010 and 1 May 2011 were validly called in accordance with the Association's constitution. Legislation Cited: Associations Incorporation Act (NSW) 1984 Associations Incorporation Act (NSW) 2009 Associations Incorporation Regulation (NSW) 2010 Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), s 1322 Cases Cited: Adamastos Shipping Co Ltd v Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Co Ltd [1959] AC 133 Byrne v Macquarie Group Services Australia Pty Ltd [2011] NSWCA 68 Club Flotilla (Pacific Palms) Ltd v Isherwood (1987) 12 ACLR 387 Daphne Lowe v Australian Chinese Community Association of New South Wales (No. 2) [2010] NSWSC 1375 Fitzgerald v Masters (1956) 95 CLR 420 Goodwin v Vietnam Veterans Motor Cycle Club Australia NSW Chapter Inc (2008) 72 NSWLR 224 Ford Motor Company of Australia Ltd v Arrowcrest Group Pty Ltd [2002] FCA 1156 Gosford Christian School Ltd v Totonjian (2006) 201 FLR 424 Grant v John Grant & Sons Pty Ltd (1950) 82 CLR 1 Investors Compensation Scheme v West Bromwich Building Society [1998] 1 WLR 896 Maggbury Pty Ltd v Hafele Australia Pty Ltd (2001) 210 CLR 181 McClelland v Burning Palms Surf Life Saving Club (2002) 191 ALR 759 Modern Buildings Wales Ltd v Limmer & Trinidad Co Ltd [1975] 1 WLR 1281 Morris v Kanssen [1946] AC 459 North Eastern Railway Company v Lord Hastings [1900] AC 260 Puccini Festival Australia Pty Ltd v Nippon Express (Australia) Pty Ltd and Anor (2007) 17 VR 36 Re Compaction Systems Pty Limited (1976) 2 NSWLR 477 Re Consolidated Nickel Mines Ltd [1914] 1 Ch 883 Re Zinotty Properties Ltd [1984] All ER 754 Rose v Boxing NSW Inc [2007] NSWSC 20 Singh v Commonwealth of Australia (2004) 222 CLR 322 Singh v Singh; Flora t/as Flora Constructions v Budget Demolition and Excavation Pty Ltd [2008] NSWSC 386 Toll (FGCT) Pty Limited v Alphapharm Pty Limited (2004) 219 CLR 165 Texts Cited: H.W.Fowler, A Dictionary of Modern English Usage, 2nd Edition, Revised by Sir Ernest Gowers, Oxford Clarendon, 1968, p 58 Category: Principal judgment Parties: First Plaintiff- Luen Fook Tong Incorporated (Incorporation number: Y2225933) Second Plaintiff- Wai Tong Wong Third Plaintiff- Huanping Chen Fourth Plaintiff- Pei Yi Chen Fifth Plaintiff- Jin Xing Huang Sixth Plaintiff- Percy Wong Seventh Plaintiff- Ping Chiu Wong Eighth Plaintiff- Hong Chu Huang Ninth Plaintiff- Pei Hua Graham