DAULTREY & TAVENER (No.2)

In *Daultrey & Tavener (No.2)*, heard by Judge WJ Neville, the proceedings concerned interim property matters and enforcement following earlier judgments. The Respondent sought a stay of orders made in March 2020. The Applicant contended that the Respondent had caused significant delays in filing material and had not provided updated evidence regarding their financial position.

The central legal issue before the court was whether to grant the Respondent's application for a stay of the March 2020 orders. This application was considered in the context of principles governing applications to re-open or vary earlier discretionary judgments, particularly where there had been substantial delays and a lack of updated evidence from the applicant for the stay.

Judge Neville refused the application for a stay. The court applied established principles regarding appeals from discretionary judgments, emphasising that an appellate court should be slow to overturn a primary judge's decision unless plainly wrong. The onus was on the applicant for the stay to establish a proper basis, and the court considered factors such as the bona fides of the applicant, the risk of the appeal being rendered nugatory, and a preliminary assessment of the strength of the proposed appeal. The court noted the Respondent's failure to provide updated financial evidence and the significant delays in their application.

The court ordered that the Respondent's application be dismissed with costs. The Respondent was ordered to pay the Applicant $200,000 within seven days, failing which a property at A Street, Town B, NSW was to be sold, with net proceeds distributed according to the March 2020 orders. The Registrar of the Federal Circuit Court was appointed to sign the contract for sale if necessary. All outstanding interim applications were dismissed, and the matter remained listed for a final hearing in May 2021.