Bardi v Giannaros

Bardi v Giannaros was an application made under the Succession Act 2006 (NSW) by the plaintiff, Bardi, seeking interim orders for the provision of funds to complete the purchase of a property in Greece. The defendant, Giannaros, opposed the application on the basis that the plaintiff was not an eligible person under the Act, and therefore, the court should not exercise its discretion to make the orders sought. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The legal issues before the court included whether the court had the jurisdiction to make an order for the provision of funds to a person who was not ordinarily resident in Australia, and whether the plaintiff was an eligible person under the Act. The court also needed to consider whether there was potential unfairness to the defendant warranting law reform, and whether there was a suitable mechanism to secure repayment if the order was revoked.

In determining the issues, the court considered the relevant provisions of the Succession Act 2006 (NSW), as well as relevant case law. The court found that while the Succession Act 2006 (NSW) provided for the making of interim orders for the provision of funds to eligible persons, there was no mechanism to secure repayment if the order was revoked, which created potential unfairness to the defendant. The court also found that the plaintiff's status as an eligible person was seriously in issue, and that there was warrant for law reform in this area. However, the court ultimately found that it did have the jurisdiction to make the order sought, and that the plaintiff was an eligible person under the Act. The court therefore made the order sought by the plaintiff.

The court ordered that the defendant pay the sum of $100,000 to the plaintiff, to be held in a trust account pending the final determination of the matter. The court also ordered that the defendant pay the plaintiff's costs of the application.