Green & Ors v Australian Hydrocarbons Nl

This matter came before the High Court of Australia on an application for special leave to appeal. The applicant, Mr. P.E. Green, sought to appear as a party and requested an adjournment of the application. He stated that he was a solicitor, though not currently practising in New South Wales, and had been unable to secure counsel for the hearing due to unforeseen circumstances regarding their availability and payment of fees. The respondent, Australian Hydrocarbons N.L., opposed the adjournment.

The primary legal issue before the High Court was whether to grant Mr. Green's application for an adjournment of the special leave application. This involved considering the reasons provided by Mr. Green for his inability to proceed with counsel and the arguments presented by the respondent against granting the adjournment. The respondent also raised concerns about the merits of the underlying dispute, highlighting the consistent failure of the appellants in previous court proceedings.

The Court, through Mason CJ, indicated that applications for special leave to appeal are generally required to be presented by counsel. Mr. Green's explanation for the absence of counsel involved a dispute over advance payment of fees and subsequent unavailability. The respondent argued that Mr. Green's explanation lacked credibility, pointing to the fact that the same counsel were retained for another matter and questioning why alternative counsel could not be engaged at short notice. The respondent further submitted that the underlying issue, concerning the delivery of bills of costs in taxable form, was a preliminary matter and that the appellants had a history of adverse decisions, suggesting a lack of merit in their case. The respondent also noted that the matter had previously been adjourned.