Mohareb v Kelso

The matter before the court involved an application by Mohareb to review a decision made by a Registrar under the Civil Procedure Rules of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute centred on the dismissal of Mohareb's notice of motion, and the subsequent order for costs against the ex-third respondent. Mohareb contested the Registrar's decision on the grounds that the notice of motion had been improperly transformed into a summons and that the ex-third respondent's appearance at the hearing was unnecessary.

The key legal issues that the court had to address were whether the applicant's notice of motion had indeed been transformed into a summons, and if so, whether the ex-third respondent's appearance at the hearing was mandatory. The court also considered whether the applicant, who had been declared a vexatious litigant, could proceed with a summons that differed substantively from the notice of motion without first obtaining leave under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW).

In its decision, the court held that the notice of motion had been transformed into a summons, which was dismissed because the applicant had not complied with the leave requirements under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW). The court found that the ex-third respondent's appearance was not necessary, given that the proceedings were not subject to the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW) orders. The court affirmed the Registrar's decision to dismiss the notice of motion and order costs against Mohareb.

The final orders of the court confirmed the dismissal of the applicant's notice of motion and upheld the costs order against the ex-third respondent. The court emphasised that the applicant, having been declared a vexatious litigant, must comply with statutory requirements when initiating proceedings that differ substantively from previous motions.