Martin v Registrar Cridland - [2025] FCA 45

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA
Martin v Registrar Cridland [2025] FCA 45

File number(s): SAD 223 of 2024

Judgment of: MCDONALD J

Date of judgment: 4 February 2025

Catchwords: PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – Application for judicial review of decision of registrar to refuse to accept documents for filing – registrar held that attempt to file documents after decision was reserved was an abuse of process – decision of registrar set aside – documents accepted for filing

Legislation:
Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 (Cth) s 23

Federal Court Rules 2011 (Cth) r 2.26

Cases cited:
Collier v Tesoriero [2017] FCA 1497

Hillier v Martin (No 19) [2024] FCA 210

Kitoko v Registrar, Registry of New South Wales, Federal Court of Australia [2023] FCA 1056

Mbuzi v Baldwin [2016] FCA 1314

MS PD v Registrar of the Federal Court of Australia [2021] FCA 1197

Shaw v Buljan [2016] FCA 829

Storry v Parkyn [2023] FCA 1141

Thompson v Hird [2023] FCA 1530

Division: General Division

Registry: South Australia

National Practice Area: Administrative and Constitutional Law and Human Rights

Number of paragraphs: 13

Date of hearing: 4 February 2025

Counsel for the Applicant: The Applicant appeared in person

Counsel for the Respondent: The Respondent filed a submitting appearance

ORDERS

SAD 223 of 2024

BETWEEN:
VICTORIA MARTIN

Applicant

AND:
REGISTRAR CRIDLAND

Respondent

ORDER MADE BY:

MCDONALD J

DATE OF ORDER:

4 FEBRUARY 2025

THE COURT ORDERS THAT:
1.The decision of the respondent, refusing to accept for filing the documents lodged by the applicant on 4 October 2024, be set aside.
2.The Further Amended Interlocutory application lodged by the applicant on 4 October 2024 be accepted for filing and the documents entitled “Amended Application for leave to appeal” and “Further Amended DRAFT Notice of appeal” be accepted for filing as annexures to the Further Amended Interlocutory application.

Note: Entry of orders is dealt with in Rule 39.32 of the Federal Court Rules 2011.

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT
MCDONALD J:

The applicant, Victoria Martin, has sought judicial review of a decision of a registrar of the Court. The registrar has filed a submitting appearance.
On 4 February 2025, I made orders setting aside the decision of the registrar and directing that the application lodged by Ms Martin be accepted for filing. I indicated that I would provide written reasons for making those orders. These are my reasons.
The background to Ms Martin’s application for judicial review is as follows. On 8 March 2024, O’Sullivan J delivered an interlocutory judgment in an action in this Court to which Ms Martin is a party, proceeding no SAD 113 of 2020: Hillier v Martin (No 19) [2024] FCA 210. Ms Martin applied for leave to appeal against that interlocutory judgment. The application for leave to appeal was heard by Markovic J on 11 July 2024 and judgment was reserved (proceeding no SAD 40 of 2024).
On 4 October 2024, Ms Martin lodged for filing in the South Australia Registry of the Court a document entitled “Further Amended Interlocutory…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

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Details

Case: [2025] FCA 45
Decision Date: 4 February 2025

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Martin applied for judicial review of a decision by the Registrar, Cridland, who refused to accept documents for filing. The dispute arose when the Registrar deemed Martin's attempt to file documents after the decision was reserved as an abuse of process. The Federal Court was called upon to determine the validity of the Registrar's decision and the appropriateness of accepting the documents for filing.

The court considered whether the Registrar's refusal to accept the documents for filing was justified and whether it constituted an abuse of process. The key issue was whether the timing of the filing, post-reservation of decision, warranted the refusal under the circumstances presented. Martin argued that the refusal was arbitrary and not grounded in the principles of judicial process.

The court found that the Registrar's decision was not supported by the law and set it aside. The Registrar's assertion that the filing was an abuse of process was deemed unfounded. The court accepted that the documents were relevant to the application and should be considered. Consequently, the court ordered the Registrar to accept the Further Amended Interlocutory application, along with the annexures, for filing.

The court’s final orders mandated the setting aside of the Registrar's decision and directed the acceptance of the documents in question. The documents entitled “Amended Application for leave to appeal” and “Further Amended DRAFT Notice of appeal” were to be treated as annexures to the Further Amended Interlocutory application. This ruling underscored the importance of adhering to procedural fairness and the need for decisions to be legally sound.

Orders

Orders of the court

1. The decision of the respondent, refusing to accept for filing the documents lodged by the applicant on 4 October 2024, be set aside.

2. The Further Amended Interlocutory application lodged by the applicant on 4 October 2024 be accepted for filing and the documents entitled “Amended Application for leave to appeal” and “Further Amended DRAFT Notice of appeal” be accepted for filing as annexures to the Further Amended Interlocutory application.

Note: Entry of orders is dealt with in Rule 39.32 of the Federal Court Rules 2011.

Background

Background to the litigation

Full text does not contain this section.

Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

Full text does not contain this section.

Decision

Reasons for decision

Full text does not contain this section.

Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

Full text does not contain this section.

File number(s):	SAD 223 of 2024
Judgment of:	MCDONALD J
Date of judgment:	4 February 2025
Catchwords:	PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – Application for judicial review of decision of registrar to refuse to accept documents for filing – registrar held that attempt to file documents after decision was reserved was an abuse of process – decision of registrar set aside – documents accepted for filing
Legislation:	Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 (Cth) s 23 Federal Court Rules 2011 (Cth) r 2.26
Cases cited:	Collier v Tesoriero [2017] FCA 1497 Hillier v Martin (No 19) [2024] FCA 210 Kitoko v Registrar, Registry of New South Wales, Federal Court of Australia [2023] FCA 1056 Mbuzi v Baldwin [2016] FCA 1314 MS PD v Registrar of the Federal Court of Australia [2021] FCA 1197 Shaw v Buljan [2016] FCA 829 Storry v Parkyn [2023] FCA 1141 Thompson v Hird [2023] FCA 1530
Division:	General Division
Registry:	South Australia
National Practice Area:	Administrative and Constitutional Law and Human Rights
Number of paragraphs:	13
Date of hearing:	4 February 2025
Counsel for the Applicant:	The Applicant appeared in person
Counsel for the Respondent:	The Respondent filed a submitting appearance

ORDER MADE BY:	MCDONALD J
DATE OF ORDER:	4 FEBRUARY 2025