Commonwealth Bank of Australia v Green

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia, acting as a mortgagee, sought a judgment for possession of land, with an execution of writ of possession scheduled against the Green family. The Greens had entered into a contract for the sale of the property in April 2015 but failed to complete the sale over a six-month period. The Greens applied for a late stay of the writ of possession. The legal issues before the court included whether the late application for a stay should be granted, the mortgagors' lack of candour with the court on previous applications regarding the reasons for the delay in settlement, and the absence of evidence from the purchasers or their incoming mortgagee concerning their readiness for settlement. The court found that the Greens had not been honest with the court on previous occasions about the reasons for the delay in settlement and that there was no evidence from the purchasers or their incoming mortgagee to suggest they were ready to complete the settlement. The court refused the application for a stay. The court ordered that the writ of possession be executed as scheduled.