Gale, Dennis Charles v Minister for Land and Water Conservation for the State of New South Wales

[1998] FCA 766

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA
NEW SOUTH WALES DISTRICT REGISTRY	NG 6004 of 1998

BETWEEN:

DENNIS CHARLES GALE
APPLICANT

AND:

MINISTER FOR LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FOR THE STATE OF NEW SOUTH WALES
FIRST RESPONDENT

NEW SOUTH WALES ABORIGINAL LAND COUNCIL
SECOND RESPONDENT

DEERUBBIN LOCAL ABORIGINAL LAND COUNCIL
THIRD RESPONDENT

JUDGE(S):	MADGWICK
DATE:	1 JULY 1998
PLACE:	SYDNEY

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT
(revised from transcript)

HIS HONOUR:  In this matter there was filed a notice of motion by dominicWYkanak to be joined in the proceedings as an interested party and he purports to seek various orders that the Court may or may not have jurisdiction to award.  By facsimile at 9:09 am there arrived at the Court a document which reads as follows:

“Urgent attention, Federal Court of Australia. -

.......
Dear Registrar - Would you please inform the court that due to illness I am unable to attend court this morning for NG 6004 and 6001 and that I seek adjournment of my matters until I'm well or have a next friend to appear for me.”

There is a word we can't decipher but it seems to be directing or asking that the matter be brought to the attention of my Associate and to that of the respondents. It is unsigned.

The handwriting may or may not be the same hand as that, apparently, of Mr Kanak who signed his notice of motion and lodged it, and also a document being a supposed "statement of customary and cultural concerns of Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islands", but the insouciance is familiar.  The number of these proceedings is 6004 of 1998.  As it happens I am also concerned in matter number 6001 of 1998 which is an appeal by Mr Kanak in relation to a similar kind of matter in which he was unsuccessful at first instance in this Court, that is in seeking to be joined as a party to some native title proceedings.

I am aware that in those proceedings Mr Kanak describes himself as a "Native Title consultant" and he shows signs of some familiarity with some of the concepts and procedures applicable under the Native Title Act. How deep his understanding is of these matters is another question. Nevertheless it appears that he is an adult, and it appears that he has a certain level of educational background. It must be obvious to such a person that an unsigned facsimile of the kind to which I have referred, which comes in circumstances in which apparently there is some default in attending to the procedures to enable the orderly disposition of his appeal in the other proceedings, is not guaranteed or even likely to move the Court to depart from its ordinary rules and practices. These include that the Court and other litigants in a case are entitled to the same courtesy which the Court regards itself as bound to accord to all litigants.

All adults with some level of education understand that court proceedings are serious proceedings, that courts are serious places and that, if you are so ill that you cannot attend court and so lonely that you have no friend to attend for you, you must take reasonable steps to notify your illness and/or loneliness in a reasonably timely way in the circumstances, and in a way which is apt to persuade the court that you may be genuine and are not merely engaged in a disreputable delaying tactic.

There is nothing before me which enables me to form a conclusion either way as to these matters.  I am not going to adjourn or fail to deal with Mr Kanak's application on the mere possibility that he might be genuine.  His application will be dismissed.

I certify that this and the preceding one (1) page is a true copy of the Reasons for Judgment herein of the Honourable Justice Madgwick

Associate:

Dated:             30 June 1998

Applicant:	no appearance
Solicitor for the Respondent:	Andrew Chalk and Associates
Date of Hearing:	30 June 1998
Date of Judgment:	30 June 1998