Mitzev v. Foxman

Case [2007] NSWCA 134



New South Wales


Court of Appeal


CITATION: Mitzev v. Foxman [2007] NSWCA 134
HEARING DATE(S): 4 June 2007
JUDGMENT OF: Hodgson JA at 1
EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE: 4 June 2007
DECISION: 1. Order (3) made in the amended notice of motion. 2. Otherwise notice of motion dismissed and ordered that the appellant to pay the respondent’s costs of the notice of motion.
CATCHWORDS: PROCEDURE - Appeal - Stay of orders
PARTIES: Assen Atanasov Mitzev - appellant
Marsha Foxman - respondent
FILE NUMBER(S): CA 40040/07
COUNSEL: Mr. V. Bedrossian for appellant
Mr. L. Einstein for respondent
SOLICITORS: Lynden E. Hopper & Co., Dee Why for appellant
Coustas & Co., Bankstown for respondent
LOWER COURT JURISDICTION: Supreme Court - Equity Division
LOWER COURT FILE NUMBER(S): ED2280/06
LOWER COURT JUDICIAL OFFICER: Hamilton J
LOWER COURT DATE OF DECISION: 14 December 2006




                          CA 40040/07

                          HODGSON JA

                          Monday 4 June 2007
MITZEV V. FOXMAN
Judgment

1 HODGSON JA: I am dealing with an amended notice of motion which was filed in court today. It bears date 31 May 2007. It seeks an extension of time for the filing of a notice of appeal without appointment, and it seeks a stay of some of the orders made by Justice Hamilton. The application for the extension of time is not opposed, and in my view the circumstances shown by the evidence justify the grant of the extension of time.

2 On the question of the stay, the material suggests that there are arguable grounds of appeal. However, that is not usually regarded as sufficient to stay orders for payment of money, and there is in fact no evidence that the money, if paid over, would be irrecoverable. The amount immediately involved is the proceeds of sale of a property which, after payment out of a mortgage and expenses of sale, may be of the order of $60,000 to $100,000. The total amount payable under the primary judge’s orders, I am told, is of the order of $700,000.

3 The respondent is prepared to undertake to the court not to seek to further execute the judgment beyond receiving the balance of proceeds of sale. In the circumstances, I think that is adequate protection for the appellant, and I am not prepared to make an order as regards the balance of the proceeds of sale.

4 On the question of costs, I think, on the matter that was actually contested today, the respondent was substantially successful, and I will order that the appellant pay the respondent’s costs of the motion, but I will not make any order that would enable those costs to be assessed prior to the hearing of the appeal.

5 So the orders I make are:

      1. I make order (3) in the amended notice of motion.
          I note that the respondent undertakes to the court not to further enforce the orders made by Justice Hamilton beyond receiving the nett proceeds of sale of the Jindabyne property.
      2. I otherwise dismiss the notice of motion and I order the appellant to pay the respondent’s costs of the notice of motion.
      **********
Details
AGLC
Mitzev v Foxman [2007] NSWCA 134
Case
[2007] NSWCA 134
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Mitzev v. Foxman concerned an application for a stay of orders made by the Supreme Court of New South Wales, heard by Hodgson JA. The applicant, Mitzev, sought to stay certain orders, while the respondent, Foxman, opposed this application.

The primary legal issue before Hodgson JA was whether the applicant had demonstrated sufficient grounds to warrant a stay of the Supreme Court's orders pending further proceedings or appeal. This involved an assessment of the applicant's prospects of success on appeal and whether the balance of convenience favoured granting the stay.

Hodgson JA considered the principles governing applications for a stay of execution, which typically require the applicant to show a strong prima facie case or at least a serious question to be tried, and that the balance of convenience favours the granting of the stay. The court's reasoning, though not detailed in the provided text, would have involved weighing the potential prejudice to each party if the stay were granted or refused.

The court ordered that order (3) made in the amended notice of motion be granted. However, the remainder of the notice of motion was dismissed, and the appellant was ordered to pay the respondent's costs of the notice of motion.

Orders

Orders of the court

1. Order (3) made in the amended notice of motion.

2. Otherwise notice of motion dismissed and ordered that the appellant to pay the respondent's costs of the notice of motion.

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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