Markisic v Middletons Lawyers

In the matter of Markisic v Middletons Lawyers, the plaintiffs sought to challenge the validity of a judgment obtained against them by alleging fraud. The proceedings took place in the Federal Circuit Court. The plaintiffs were unsuccessful in their initial application and subsequent appeal to the Court of Appeal, and their application for special leave to appeal to the High Court was also denied. Despite these outcomes, they attempted to re-agitate their claims by relying on evidence that was available at the trial. The court considered whether it should permit the plaintiffs to issue subpoenas in the hope of obtaining evidence that could support their claims. The court concluded that the plaintiffs were abusing the process by re-litigating old claims and that such conduct prejudiced the community and other litigants. The court exercised its inherent power to restrain the plaintiffs from making further motions without leave.

The central legal issues were whether the plaintiffs' attempts to set aside the judgment on the basis of fraud constituted an abuse of process and whether the court had the power to restrain the plaintiffs from filing further motions without leave. The court considered whether the plaintiffs had demonstrated a basis for disturbing the original judgment or whether they were merely re-agitating old claims. The court found that the plaintiffs had not shown any new evidence or basis for overturning the previous decisions. The court also considered the broader implications of allowing the plaintiffs to continue making unwarranted and vexatious applications. The court concluded that the plaintiffs' conduct was an abuse of process and that it had the inherent power to restrain them from filing further motions without leave.