Ellis v Dariush-Far

[2007] QCA 398

SUPREME COURT OF QUEENSLAND

CITATION:

Ellis v Dariush-Far [2007] QCA 398

PARTIES:

GEOFFREY ELLIS
(applicant/respondent)

v
ALEXANDER DARIUSH-FAR
(respondent/appellant)

FILE NO/S:

Appeal No 5840 of 2007
SC No 2180 of 2007

DIVISION:

Court of Appeal

PROCEEDING:

General Civil Appeal

ORIGINATING COURT:

Supreme Court at Brisbane

DELIVERED ON:

16 November 2007

DELIVERED AT:

Brisbane

HEARING DATE:

8 November 2007

JUDGES:

Williams and Keane JJA and Daubney J 
Separate reasons for judgment of each member of the Court, each concurring as to the orders made

ORDER:

1. Appeal dismissed

2. Appellant to pay respondent's costs on the standard basis 

CATCHWORDS:

PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW – FOREIGN JUDGMENTS - EFFECT AND ENFORCEMENT – LEGISLATION FOR ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGMENTS – JUDGMENTS OF COURTS OF COUNTRIES OTHER THAN AUSTRALIAN STATES OR TERRITORIES – QUEENSLAND – where third party recovered judgment from appellant in the District Court of New Zealand – where third party assigned judgment debt to respondent –  where respondent applied to have judgment registered as foreign judgment in the Supreme Court of Queensland – whether deed of assignment effective to assign judgment debt to respondent – whether judgment enforceable in New Zealand for purposes of Foreign Judgments Act 1991 (Cth) s 6(6) – meaning of "the date of the application" in s 6(6) Foreign Judgments Act 1991 (Cth)

District Court Rules 1992 (NZ), r 568
Foreign Judgments Act 1991 (Cth), s 3, s 6
Property Law Act 1952 (NZ), s 130(1)

Brisbane Land Pty Ltd v Pine Rivers Shire Council [2000]
1 Qd R 493, cited
Chacmol Holdings Pty Ltd v Handberg (2005) 215 ALR 748, cited
O'Loughlin v Mount (1998) 71 SASR 206, cited
Re Johnson; Ex parte Johnson v Tonkin (1994) 123 ALR 607, distinguished
World Square Pty Ltd v Taylor [1990] 1 Qd R 583, distinguished

COUNSEL:

P A Hastie for the appellant
D C Rangiah for the respondent

SOLICITORS:

McInnes Wilson for the appellant
Carne Reidy Herd for the respondent

1. WILLIAMS JA:  I have had the advantage of reading the reasons for judgment of Keane JA and there is nothing I wish to add thereto.  I agree with the orders proposed.

1. KEANE JA: On 13 June 2007, the learned primary judge made orders for the registration in the Supreme Court of Queensland as a foreign judgment pursuant to Pt 2 of the Foreign Judgments Act 1991 (Cth) ("the Act") of the judgment given by the District Court of New Zealand, Christchurch registry, No 1099 of 2000 ("the New Zealand judgment") on 4 April 2001.

1. The appellant, the judgment debtor, seeks to have the orders for the registration of the New Zealand judgment set aside.  The principal basis of the appeal is the contention that the learned primary judge erred in concluding that the judgment debt under the New Zealand judgment had been effectively assigned to the respondent.  This contention is essentially concerned with the proper construction of the instrument whereby the debt was assigned.

1. Before I discuss the arguments agitated on the appeal, I will summarise the…