Mr Nicholas Sewell v SSHL Pty Ltd

[2021] FWC 6668

[2021] FWC 6668

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.773 - Application to deal with an unlawful termination dispute

Mr Nicholas Sewell
v
SSHL Pty Ltd
(C2021/7530)

DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN MELBOURNE, 22 DECEMBER 2021

Application to deal with an unlawful termination dispute - application dismissed

[1] Mr Nicholas Sewell (applicant) has made an application under s 773 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act) in which he claims to have been dismissed by SSHL Pty Ltd (respondent) in contravention of the unlawful termination provisions in Part 6-4 of the Act. The application does not provide current or complete contact details for the respondent. The applicant has not responded to correspondence from the Commission alerting him to the deficiency in his application, nor has he rectified the deficiency. I have decided to dismiss the application under s 587 of the Act for the following reasons.

[2] On 3 December 2021, following a number of earlier attempts to contact the applicant, the Commission wrote to Mr Sewell, noting that the contact details provided for the respondent were incomplete and stating that unless the necessary information was received by 10 December 2021, the application may be dismissed. The applicant has not filed an amended application or provided the necessary details. He has not made any submissions as to why his application should not be dismissed.

[3] Section 587 of the Act provides that:

“587 Dismissing applications

(1) Without limiting when the FWC may dismiss an application, the FWC may dismiss an application if:

(a) the application is not made in accordance with this Act; or

(b) the application is frivolous or vexatious; or

(c) the application has no reasonable prospects of success.

(2) Despite paragraphs (1) (b) and (c), the FWC must not dismiss an application under section 365 or 773 on the ground that the application:

(a) is frivolous or vexatious; or

(b) has no reasonable prospects of success.

(3) The FWC may dismiss an application:

(a) on its own initiative; or

(b) on application.”

[4] The present application is not made in accordance with the Act. Section 585 of the Act states that an application to the Commission ‘must be in accordance with the procedural rules (if any) relating to applications of that kind’. The application in the present matter did not provide contact details for the respondent as it is required to do by the form F9 (see Fair Work Commission Rules (see Rule 8 and Schedule 1). The document filed by the applicant is not in substantial compliance with the relevant form. The application did not comply with the procedural rules and was therefore not made in accordance with s 585 of the Act.

[5] This deficiency engages s 587(1)(a). The Commission has a discretion to dismiss the application. I have decided to exercise this discretion because it is fair and reasonable to do so. The applicant was notified that the application was defective and that if the necessary information was not provided, the application may be dismissed. The applicant has taken no action to address the deficiency in the application. I dismiss the application in accordance with s 587(1)(a).

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

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