Mackay v GATE

In *Mackay v GATE*, the applicant, Mr. Mackay, sought to set aside a default judgment entered against him in favour of the respondent, GATE, by the Magistrates Court of Queensland. The dispute arose from an alleged debt owed by Mr. Mackay to GATE.

The primary legal issue before Judge Coker was whether Mr. Mackay had established sufficient grounds to have the default judgment set aside. This required the Court to consider whether Mr. Mackay had a meritorious defence to the claim and whether he had provided a satisfactory explanation for his failure to file a defence within the prescribed time.

Judge Coker applied the principles governing applications to set aside default judgments, which require a demonstration of both a defence on the merits and an explanation for the delay. The Court found that Mr. Mackay had not provided a sufficiently compelling explanation for his failure to file a defence, nor had he adequately demonstrated a defence that was likely to succeed. Consequently, the Court was not satisfied that it was in the interests of justice to set aside the default judgment.

The application to set aside the default judgment was dismissed.