Gardiner v Aquasun Pty Ltd trading as Asher Coastwise Real Estate (No 3)

The applicant, Mr Gardiner, brought a claim against Aquasun Pty Ltd, trading as Asher Coastwise Real Estate, and the real estate agent, Mr. Hemmings. The dispute centred around disability discrimination and the failure to provide reasonable accommodation in the context of real estate dealings. The matter was heard in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia. Mr. Gardiner argued that the real estate agent failed to provide reasonable accommodation for his disability, which resulted in significant disadvantage.

The legal issues that the court had to determine were whether the real estate agent had failed to provide reasonable accommodation for Mr. Gardiner's disability and, if so, what the appropriate remedy should be. The court needed to assess the extent of the discrimination and the impact it had on Mr. Gardiner. Furthermore, the court considered the application by Mr. Gardiner to set aside and amend the consent orders made previously on 23 February 2006.

The court dismissed Mr. Gardiner's applications to set aside and amend the consent orders, finding that there were no grounds to do so. It was established that Aquasun Pty Ltd and Mr. Hemmings had indeed discriminated against Mr. Gardiner by failing to provide reasonable accommodation. Consequently, Aquasun Pty Ltd was ordered to pay an additional sum of $7,500 to Mr. Gardiner, while Mr. Hemmings was ordered to pay $2,500. Both respondents were also ordered to pay the costs incurred by Mr. Gardiner after 23 February 2006. The court concluded by dismissing the proceedings overall.