Hessey-Tenny & Anor v Jones

The case of Hessey-Tenny & Anor v Jones involved an appeal against a decision made by the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT). The applicants sought a stay of proceedings to prevent enforcement of the QCAT decision pending the outcome of their appeal. The applicants argued that refusal of the stay would render them subject to enforcement proceedings. The Supreme Court was required to decide whether a stay could be granted when leave to appeal had not yet been granted. The Court considered section 145 of the QCAT Act, which allows for the stay of a decision pending the final outcome of an appeal. The Court noted that this section is premised on the existence of an appeal and is analogous to rule 761 of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999. The Court referred to previous cases, including Perovich v ASIC and Bell v Bay-Jespersen, which held that the power to stay a decision pending an appeal does not extend to cases where leave to appeal has not yet been granted. The Court also considered the Supreme Court's inherent jurisdiction to grant a stay in such circumstances, but noted that QCAT does not possess this jurisdiction. The Court concluded that the power to grant a stay under section 145 is not available in cases where leave to appeal has not yet been granted. The Court further noted that QCAT's power to make interim orders is limited to cases where an appeal has already been lodged. In light of these considerations, the Court refused the application for a stay of proceedings.

ORDERS:
The application for a stay of the learned Magistrate’s decision of 4 April 2018 be refused.