Henke & Ors v Federal Court of Aust

Gaudron J, sitting in chambers, considered an application by the applicants, Henke and others, for leave to appeal to the Full Federal Court against a decision of a single judge of the Federal Court. The dispute concerned the applicants' entitlement to certain payments under a deed of settlement and release.

The primary legal issue before Gaudron J was whether the applicants had established a sufficient arguable case to warrant granting leave to appeal. This involved assessing whether the single judge's decision contained an error of law or fact that was likely to be upheld on appeal.

Gaudron J's reasoning focused on the threshold for granting leave to appeal, which requires demonstrating that the appeal has a real prospect of success. Her Honour examined the grounds of appeal advanced by the applicants in light of the material before her, including the terms of the deed of settlement and the decision under appeal. The principles applied were those governing the grant of leave to appeal, emphasizing the need for a substantial, rather than merely theoretical, chance of success.

Leave to appeal was refused.