Dovade Pty Ltd v Westpac Banking Group

Dovade Pty Ltd (the appellant) brought proceedings against Westpac Banking Group (the respondent) alleging, among other things, misleading and deceptive conduct and breach of a duty of care in relation to a loan agreement. The dispute concerned advice provided by the bank and the appellant's subsequent financial losses. The matter was heard in the Court of Appeal of New South Wales.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal included whether the respondent had engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct in contravention of section 52 of the *Trade Practices Act 1974* (Cth), whether the respondent had breached a duty of care owed to the appellant, and whether the appellant was entitled to equitable damages. A significant issue also raised was an apprehension of bias on the part of the primary judge, stemming from the judge's customer relationship with the respondent bank and his wife's shareholding in the bank, and whether this constituted a direct pecuniary interest that disqualified the judge from hearing the case, or if such an apprehension had been waived by the appellant.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal. The judges found that the appellant had not established the necessary elements for its claims of misleading and deceptive conduct or breach of duty of care. Furthermore, the Court found no apprehended bias on the part of the primary judge that would warrant disqualification, concluding that any potential pecuniary interest was not of a nature that would lead a reasonable and informed observer to apprehend partiality, and that in any event, the appellant had waived any such objection.

The appeal was dismissed with costs.