Arambatzis v Foundas; Foundas v Wengel

In *Arambatzis v Foundas; Foundas v Wengel*, the Court of Appeal considered applications for a stay of execution of a writ for possession and for legal assistance. The primary applicant, Mrs Foundas, sought to stay the execution of a writ for possession that had been issued against her. Her husband, Mr Foundas, also sought a stay, producing fresh evidence that he contended raised a serious question of a miscarriage of justice in the decision below.

The Court was required to determine whether to grant a stay of execution of the writ for possession, considering the late production of fresh evidence by Mrs Foundas. It also had to consider whether Mr Foundas had demonstrated an entitlement to remain in possession and, consequently, to a stay. Furthermore, the Court was asked to consider a referral for pro bono legal assistance for Mrs Foundas to explore the fresh evidence.

Brereton JA granted the stay of execution of the writ for possession in favour of Mrs Foundas, noting that the fresh evidence, which had indicia of authenticity and was produced at an extremely late stage, raised a serious question of a miscarriage of justice. The interests of justice, in his Honour's view, required an exploration of this evidence before the irrevocable step of ejectment was taken. The Court also granted Mrs Foundas's application for a referral to the Registrar for pro bono legal assistance to aid in the exploration of this evidence. However, Mr Foundas's application for a stay was dismissed, as he was unable to demonstrate any entitlement to remain in possession.

The Court ordered that the execution of the writ for possession be stayed until 2 June 2021 or further order. Mrs Foundas was referred to the Registrar for pro bono legal assistance, and the proceedings were adjourned to the Registrar’s list on 3 May 2021. Mrs Foundas was also ordered to produce the original of certain documents by 18 March 2021. Mr Foundas's notice of motion was dismissed.