BLJ v QLB

The appellant, BLJ, has appealed a protection order made by the Magistrates Court at Brisbane on 8 August 2017, pursuant to section 164 of the Domestic Violence and Protection Act 2012. The order was made during a pre-trial mention when BLJ did not appear. The respondent, QLB, is the applicant for the protection order. The legal dispute before the court was whether the appellant was denied procedural fairness and whether exceptional circumstances existed to allow the appellant to adduce fresh evidence.

The court was required to determine whether the appellant was denied procedural fairness due to their absence at the pre-trial mention and whether there were exceptional circumstances that justified the admission of fresh evidence at the appeal hearing. The appellant argued that their absence was due to an administrative error and that they were unaware of the mention. They further submitted that the new evidence would be crucial to rebut the allegations of domestic violence.

The court found that the appellant was indeed denied procedural fairness as their absence was not due to any fault on their part. The court further held that exceptional circumstances existed to permit the appellant to adduce fresh evidence. Consequently, the appeal was allowed, and the orders made on 8 August 2017 were set aside. The matter was remitted to the Magistrates Court at Brisbane for rehearing according to law. No order was made regarding costs.