Baulkham Hills Shire Council v Stankovic

In *Baulkham Hills Shire Council v Stankovic*, the Court of Appeal of New South Wales considered an application to vacate a hearing date and the associated costs. The dispute involved a bankrupt respondent and the appellant's request to adjourn the appeal.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the bankrupt respondent should bear their own costs thrown away by the adjournment and whether the bankrupt respondent had an inherent right to appear on the appeal. The court noted that the bankrupt respondent had been a party in the proceedings below, and their entitlement to appear on the appeal was dependent on the subject matter of the appeal and the provisions of the *Bankruptcy Act 1966* (Cth).

The court reasoned that the bankrupt respondent's right to appear, or the need for leave to appear, was contingent on the nature of the appeal. The court ultimately granted the application to vacate the hearing date and ordered that the appellant pay the first respondent's costs thrown away by the adjournment, as well as the first respondent's costs of the notice of motion and related written submissions.