Greig v Stramit Corporation Pty Ltd

The appeal involved two separate proceedings against Stramit Corporation P/L, a company which had been paid by Australian Building Industries P/L (ABI) prior to its liquidation. The liquidators of ABI sought to recover the payments made to Stramit on the grounds that they constituted unfair preferences. The court was required to determine the validity of the liquidators’ claims and whether they had a real prospect of succeeding.

The court considered the liquidators' contention that the payments were preferential and thus recoverable. The court concluded that the liquidators did not have a real prospect of succeeding in their claim against Stramit, as the payments were made in the ordinary course of business and did not constitute preferences. Regarding the second issue, the court found that the original order granting an extension of time for the liquidators to bring their claims against Stramit should not have been set aside. The court held that the liquidators were aware that Stramit would be significantly affected by an order extending time, and that the extension should not have been granted in the first place.

The final orders were that the appeal No 5302 of 2002 was dismissed with costs to be assessed. The appeal No 9833 of 2002 was allowed, and the orders of Mullins J of 1st and 25th October 2002 were set aside. The application filed on 5 June 2002 was dismissed, and the respondents were ordered to pay the costs of and incidental to the application and the appeal to be assessed. The appeal was also allowed in respect of the appeal No 9833 of 2002 from S8117/01, with costs to be assessed. The order dismissing the application filed on 23 May 2002 was set aside, and the appellant was granted leave to withdraw the admission of the matters alleged in paragraph 18 of the Statement of Claim and to file and serve its Amended Defence of 23 May 2002. Judgment was entered for the defendant Stramit Corporation Limited in action S 8117/02, with costs of and incidental to the application and action to be assessed.