Hempel & Anor v Attorney-General

Arthur James Hempel and Lawrence Edgar Hempel applied to the High Court of Australia for special leave to appeal. The applicants sought to challenge a decision, though the specific nature of that decision and the court from which the appeal was sought are not detailed in the provided transcript. The Attorney-General was the respondent in the matter.

The primary legal issue before the High Court was whether the applicants should be granted leave to amend their notice of application for special leave to appeal. Following the granting of leave to amend, the applicants indicated their intention to argue only a specific ground, namely ground 2C, which related to a denial of natural justice. This ground concerned the applicants' alleged denial of the right to rebut the case against them.

The Court granted the applicants leave to amend their notice of application. The applicants' legal representatives stated that they would confine their argument to the amended ground 2C, which alleged a denial of natural justice by reason of the applicants being denied the right to rebut the case presented against them. The respondent did not oppose the application for leave to amend, despite receiving late notice.