Hero Pty Ltd v Peter Bestry

Hero Pty Ltd (the applicant) sought to set aside a statutory demand issued by Peter Bestry (the respondent). The dispute concerned whether Hero Pty Ltd owed a debt to Peter Bestry, which was the basis of the statutory demand. The matter was heard in the Federal Court of Australia.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether Hero Pty Ltd had a genuine dispute with Peter Bestry regarding the existence of the debt claimed in the statutory demand. This required the Court to consider the nature of the alleged debt and whether the grounds raised by Hero Pty Ltd constituted a "genuine dispute" as contemplated by the relevant provisions of the *Corporations Act 2001* (Cth).

Justice Ian Thompson found that Hero Pty Ltd had failed to demonstrate a genuine dispute. The Court considered the evidence presented by both parties and concluded that the applicant's contentions did not raise a substantial question as to the existence of the debt. The principles applied focused on the threshold required to establish a genuine dispute, which necessitates more than a mere assertion of a defence; it requires evidence that raises a real question of fact or law. The Court noted that the applicant's arguments were speculative and lacked sufficient evidentiary support to meet the required standard.