Moy v Briscoe and Company Limited

This case concerned an appeal to the High Court of Australia from a decision of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, sitting in its Bankruptcy jurisdiction. The appellant, Moy, sought to overturn an order for the sequestration of his estate, which had been made by the Registrar in Bankruptcy and subsequently upheld by Street J. The primary dispute revolved around the validity of a delegation of power by a Judge of the Supreme Court to the Registrar, and whether Moy's conduct constituted an act of bankruptcy.

The legal issues before the High Court were twofold. Firstly, whether a delegation of the Judge in Bankruptcy's powers to the Registrar was valid when there was a temporary vacancy in the office of the Judge in Bankruptcy. Secondly, whether the appellant's statement to the agent of a creditor, indicating he had placed his affairs in the hands of accountants and had been advised not to pay any accounts in the interim, amounted to a notice that he had suspended or was about to suspend payment of his debts, thereby constituting an available act of bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy Act 1898.

The Court held that the delegation of power was valid. It reasoned that section 15 of the Supreme Court and Circuit Courts Act 1900 permitted any Judge of the Supreme Court to exercise the jurisdiction of a designated Judge, such as the Judge in Bankruptcy, for reasonable cause. This provision was interpreted to apply even during a vacancy in the titular office, as the jurisdiction vested in the Supreme Court and could be exercised by any Judge acting in that capacity. Furthermore, the Court found that the appellant's statement to the creditor's agent constituted an act of bankruptcy. Applying the principles from *In re Lamb; Ex parte Gibson*, the Court determined that the statement, made in response to a demand for payment and in circumstances where the debtor was seeking time to assess his financial position, would reasonably lead the creditor to understand that the debtor was suspending or about to suspend payment of his debts. The appeal was dismissed, with the costs of the appeal to be the petitioning creditors' costs.