BILLINGS & LONGLEY

In the matter of *Billings & Longley*, heard before Johns J, the applicant husband sought an expedited hearing of the wife's Response to Application in a Case. The wife had filed her Response on 26 October 2017, and the husband sought to have this matter heard urgently.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the application for an expedited hearing should be granted. This required the court to consider the relevant rules of the *Family Law Rules 2004* (Cth), specifically rule 12.10A, which governs the listing of matters for hearing.

Johns J refused the application for an expedited hearing. The court's reasoning, while not detailed in the provided text, appears to have been based on the existing procedural framework and the need for proper directions and filing of evidence by both parties before a final hearing could be contemplated. The court instead made orders for a directions hearing on 11 December 2017, requiring the husband to file and serve any Reply and supporting affidavits within 14 days. Following the dismissal of interim applications, extant applications for final orders were to be allocated to a judicial docket for listing as soon as reasonably practicable.