Johnstone v State of New South Wales

The applicant, Johnstone, sought leave to appeal a decision of a District Court judge who had refused to order the removal of proceedings to the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned the applicant's claim against the State of New South Wales. Section 145(2) of the *District Court Act 1973* (NSW) provides a bar to the removal of proceedings to the Supreme Court unless a judge is satisfied that the amount likely to be awarded to the plaintiff will exceed $750,000.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the District Court judge had erred in finding that the applicant had not satisfied the threshold requirement under s 145(2) of the *District Court Act*. This involved determining whether the judge had applied the correct legal test and whether their satisfaction, or lack thereof, was sufficiently explained and supported by the evidence.

The Court of Appeal reasoned that the judge was not required to conduct a complete assessment of the applicant's claim to determine the likely quantum of damages. Instead, the judge's task was to form a satisfaction, based on the available evidence, as to whether the claim was likely to exceed the statutory threshold. The Court found that the judge had correctly applied this test, had sufficiently explained the reasons for their decision, and that the conclusion reached was open on the evidence presented.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal extended the time for the applicant to apply for leave to appeal, but ultimately dismissed the application for leave to appeal with costs.