Business Insurance Australia Pty Ltd v District Court of New South Wales & Anor

Business Insurance Australia Pty Ltd (the claimant) sought to challenge the jurisdiction of a Judicial Registrar of the District Court of New South Wales to hear and determine a notice of motion for security for costs filed on 24 January 2006. The proceedings involved the District Court of New South Wales and the second respondent, and the matter was heard by the Court of Appeal of New South Wales.

The central legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the Judicial Registrar possessed jurisdiction under section 1335 of the *Corporations Act* 2001 (Cth) to hear the application for security for costs, and alternatively, whether the Registrar had jurisdiction under rule 21(d) of Part 42 of the *Uniform Civil Procedure Rules* 1999 (NSW) to do so. The Court was also required to consider the implications of federal jurisdiction being exercised by an officer of a State court and whether the *Corporations Act* intended to cover the field to the exclusion of State rules.

The Court of Appeal reasoned that the Judicial Registrar did not have jurisdiction under section 1335 of the *Corporations Act* because the exercise of federal jurisdiction by an officer of a State court was not subject to appellate review in the manner contemplated by the Act. However, the Court found that the Judicial Registrar did have jurisdiction under the *Uniform Civil Procedure Rules* to hear and determine the notice of motion for security for costs, as there was no intention for the *Corporations Act* to cover the field to the exclusion of concurrent State jurisdiction in this instance.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal declared that the Judicial Registrar lacked jurisdiction under section 1335 of the *Corporations Act* but possessed jurisdiction under the *Uniform Civil Procedure Rules*. The summons for judicial review was otherwise dismissed, as was the summons for leave to appeal. The claimant was ordered to pay the costs of the first and second opponents, with the costs of the first opponent to be on a submitting basis.