Brown v Mikulski

In *Brown v Mikulski*, the applicant, Brown, sought to set aside a default judgment entered against him in favour of the respondent, Mikulski. The dispute arose from an alleged breach of a loan agreement. The application to set aside the default judgment was heard by Judge Driver in the District Court of New South Wales.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the applicant had established sufficient grounds to set aside the default judgment. This required the court to consider whether the applicant had a meritorious defence to the claim and whether there was a good reason for the delay in filing a defence. The court also had to determine if the applicant had acted with due diligence once he became aware of the default judgment.

Judge Driver applied the principles established in *Colgate-Palmolive Company v. Cussons Pty Ltd* and *Meates v. Australian Guarantee Corporation Ltd*. The court noted that to set aside a default judgment, an applicant must demonstrate both a defence on the merits and a good reason for the delay. In this instance, the applicant failed to provide a sufficiently detailed or credible defence to the claim. Furthermore, the court found that the applicant's explanation for the delay in filing a defence was not satisfactory, indicating a lack of due diligence.

Consequently, the application to set aside the default judgment was dismissed.