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JUDGMENT No. ....? !..&L .... .....
IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA ) )
VICTORIA DISTRICT REGISTRY ) V. No. G.316 of 1988 1
GENERAL DIVISION 1 BETWEEN: KELLY SERVICES INC. AND KELLY GIRL
OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED
Applicants
and
DRAKE PERSONNEL LIMITED, RONALD JOHN URWIN AND
ANGEL0 VINCENT CASCONE
Respondents
COURT: NORTHROP, KEELY & BURCHETT JJ
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DATE: 25 NOVEMBER 1988 PLACE: MELBOURNE
EX-TEMPORE REASONS F ~ R JUDGMENT I
THE COURT: I l
On 29 September 1988 Ihe Court constituted by
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Jenkinson J. made interlocutory orders restraining the l
respondents, in substance, from 'sing the word "Kelly" in
relation to the carrying on of. i business in relation to procuring natural persons for emlloyment l In industry. The i
respondents by notlce of motion bated 18 October 1988 are
seeking leave to appeal f rom Bat I interlocutory judgment I delivered on 29th day of Septembe' 1988.
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Under s.Z4(l)(a) and s.25(2) of the Federal Court
of Australia Act 1976 leave to appeal from an interlocutory
order can only be made with the leave of the Court. Order
52 r.10 of the Federal Court Rules provides the method by
which that leave is to be sought. It is sought by way of
motion in the prdceeding in which the order was made and it
has been held in the case of Thomas Borthwick and Sons
(Pacific Holdings) Limited v Trade Practices Commission (1988) 79 A.L.R. 171 that a person seeking leave to appeal has an option of making the motion returnable before a Full Court or a single Judge.
The facts giving rise to the motion are set out in .-
the reasons for fudgment of Jenkinson J. The primary basis
for the granting of the injunction was based upon a
contravention of s.52 of the Trade Practices Act 1974. Counsel for the respondent, in moving the motion, in the
outline of submission and in oral argument, contended that there was an error of law expressed by the trial judge in relation to the question of the reputation of the applicant
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necessary to found the claim of conduct in contravention of s.52.
The High Court, in Adam P. Brown Male Fashions Pty
Ltd v Philip Morris Inc (1981) 148 C.L.R. 170 and in
particular at pages 176 to 177 made it quite clear that interlocutory orders, including interlocutory injunctions,
are matters of practice and procedure and that an Appeal Court should not interfere with the discretion of the trial
Judge unless there is some error of principle or some
substantial injustice caused by the effect of the order itself.
Having heard the arguments put, the Court is
satisfied that nothing has been said which shows that the
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trial Judge made any error of law which would justify the granting of leave to appeal from the interlocutory judgment.
The trial Judge made special reference to the problems facing
the first respoqdent and the damage likely to be suffered by
it if, in due course, the injunction was held to be
inappropriate. The difficulty of establishing the amount of damages was recognised and in so doing it made it clear that he gave great weight to those considerations. No substantial injustice is caused by the effect of the order. In his reason for judgment the trial Judge did not
express any final views at all on any of the questions of law raised but in our opinion, quite correctly, stated that there
were serious issues to be tried and we see no error which
justified the granting of leave. Accordingly, the motion
- AGLC
- Kelly Services Inc. and Kelly Girl of Australia Ltd v Drake Personnel Ltd [1988] FCA 718
- Case
- [1988] FCA 718
- Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
The legal issues the court needed to address included whether there was an error of law in the interlocutory judgment that would warrant the granting of leave to appeal. The respondents argued that the trial judge had erred in his understanding of the reputation necessary to found a claim of conduct in contravention of section 52 of the Trade Practices Act 1974. However, the court considered the High Court's stance on interlocutory orders, which holds that an appeal court should not interfere with the trial judge's discretion unless there is an error of principle or substantial injustice. The court found that the trial judge had given appropriate consideration to the potential damages and difficulties in establishing the amount of damages, thereby not committing any error of law.
The court concluded that no substantial injustice was caused by the interlocutory order. The trial judge had rightly refrained from expressing any final views on the legal questions raised, acknowledging that serious issues were to be tried. The court saw no justification for granting leave to appeal based on the arguments presented. Consequently, the motion for leave to appeal was dismissed.
Orders
Orders of the court
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Background
Background to the litigation
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Evidence
Evidence Before The Court
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Decision
Reasons for decision
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Ratio Decidendi
Legal Principle Established
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