Mateljan v HTT Huntley Heritage Pty Ltd

In *Mateljan v HTT Huntley Heritage Pty Ltd*, the Full Court of the Supreme Court of New South Wales considered a substitution motion brought by the appellant. The dispute concerned the assignability of certain causes of action, particularly in the context of bankruptcy.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the appellant, as a bankrupt, possessed the power to appoint a receiver, and whether the causes of action sought to be assigned were legally assignable. This involved an examination of the implications of bankruptcy on the bankrupt's ability to deal with their property and rights, and the principles governing the assignment of choses in action.

The Court reasoned that the *Bankruptcy Act 1966* (Cth) vests the property of a bankrupt, including their causes of action, in the trustee. Consequently, a bankrupt generally lacks the power to assign such causes of action. The Court found that the proposed assignment was beyond the appellant's power and that the causes of action in question were not assignable in equity in the manner attempted.

The Court ordered that the substitution motion be dismissed and that the appellant pay the respondent’s costs of the motion.