Johnston v Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd & Ors

The applicant, Johnston, sought leave to appeal from a decision of the primary judge who had determined that the applicant's pleading disclosed no reasonable cause of action and that the defect was incapable of correction. The respondents were Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd and others. The dispute concerned an application for leave to appeal a decision regarding the sufficiency of a pleading in a tort claim, specifically malicious prosecution.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the primary judge erred in finding that the applicant's pleading failed to disclose a reasonable cause of action and that this defect could not be remedied. This required the Court to consider the threshold for disclosing a reasonable cause of action and the circumstances under which a pleading might be considered incapable of amendment.

The Court granted leave to appeal, but it was limited to the specific question of whether the primary judge erred in their determination regarding the pleading's sufficiency and its capacity for correction. The scope of the appeal was further restricted to the issues identified within paragraphs [37] to [48] of the judgment. The Court also imposed conditions on the applicant regarding the filing of further documentation, directing that no additional material be filed except by leave or in response to the opponents' submissions. The costs of the leave application were to be costs in the appeal.