LG & Anor v The Public Advocate

LG & ANOR
v
THE PUBLIC ADVOCATE
[2020] HCASL 184
M49/2020

The applicants require an extension of time within which to file this application for special leave to appeal from orders of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria (Beach and Hargrave JJA, Quigley A-JA), refusing leave to appeal from the decision of Forbes J.
The decision of the Court of Appeal is plainly correct. Accordingly, an appeal to this Court would have no prospects of success. It would therefore be futile to grant the extension of time that is sought. Special leave should be refused.
Pursuant to r 41.08.1 of the High Court Rules 2004 (Cth), we direct the Registrar to draw up, sign and seal an order dismissing the applications.

V.M Bell S.J Gageler

9 September 2020

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of LG & Anor v The Public Advocate involved an application for special leave to appeal against orders from the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria. The applicants sought an extension of time to file their application, which was denied by the Court of Appeal. The matter was brought before the High Court of Australia to determine whether special leave to appeal should be granted. The applicants argued for an extension to file their application, while the respondent opposed it, asserting that the appeal had no prospects of success.

The legal issues before the court were whether the applicants should be granted an extension of time to file their application for special leave to appeal, and if such an appeal would have any reasonable prospects of success. The High Court needed to assess the correctness of the Court of Appeal's decision and determine if there were any grounds for granting special leave, considering the futility of the proposed appeal.

In delivering the judgment, the High Court found that the Court of Appeal's decision was plainly correct and that the appeal would have no prospects of success. The High Court held that granting the extension of time sought by the applicants would be futile, as the appeal would not succeed. Consequently, the court refused special leave to appeal. The reasoning was based on the Court of Appeal's sound judgment and the absence of any viable grounds for the appeal.

The final orders of the High Court dismissed the applications for special leave to appeal and directed the Registrar to draw up, sign, and seal the order. This decision underscored the importance of the Court of Appeal's role in filtering cases that are unlikely to succeed at a higher level and reinforced the principles governing the grant of special leave in the Australian legal system.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

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Legal Principle Established