Darley (No 4)

In the case of Darley (No 4), the mother sought leave to appeal from orders dismissing two applications she had made, which were considered to be in contravention of the father. The matter was heard in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia. The primary concern of the court was whether the mother's proposed appeal lacked reasonable grounds and was vexatious. The mother had previously been declared a vexatious litigant and was subject to an injunction prohibiting her from instituting proceedings against the father or the Independent Children's Lawyer without first obtaining leave.

The legal issues the court had to decide were whether the mother's proposed appeal lacked reasonable grounds and whether it was vexatious. The mother had to satisfy the court that her proposed appeal was not vexatious and that it had reasonable grounds. The court examined the mother's submissions and found that they contained numerous irrelevant and baseless allegations, which led to the conclusion that her proposed appeal lacked reasonable grounds. Furthermore, the court was not satisfied that the appeal was not vexatious, given the mother's history of vexatious litigation.

The court's reasoning and outcome were based on the mother's history of vexatious litigation and the content of her submissions. The court found that the mother's proposed appeal lacked reasonable grounds and was likely to be vexatious. Therefore, the court refused the mother's application for leave to appeal and dismissed her application in an appeal. The court's final orders were that the application in an appeal filed on 28 July 2023 be dismissed.