Nimmo & Bush

The applicant, Nimmo, appealed against a decision of the Family Court of Australia, and Bush sought an order to expedite the hearing of the appeal. The appeal related to a Family Law matter, and the grounds for appeal were based on procedural unfairness and apprehended bias. The Family Court of Australia was required to determine whether the application to expedite the appeal should be granted, considering the relevant rules and the circumstances of the case.

The court considered the provisions of Family Law Rules 2004 (Cth), rule 12.10A, which is relevant to applications to expedite appeals. The court also took into account the grounds for appeal, which asserted procedural unfairness and apprehended bias. The applicant had acted reasonably and without delay, and there were concerns of harm to a child. The court determined that the case should be given priority to the detriment of other cases.

The court allowed the application to expedite the appeal. The appeal was to be heard by the Full Court of the Family Court of Australia in the week commencing 6 March 2017. The parties were required to attend upon the Appeals Registrar forthwith upon the conclusion of the hearing of this Application for the purpose of the Registrar making directions for the said hearing of the appeal. The costs of and incidental to this application were reserved to the Full Court.

The final orders were that appeal No NA 86/2016 be expedited, the appeal be heard by the Full Court of the Family Court of Australia in the week commencing 6 March 2017 on a date and at a time during that week to be advised in writing by the Appeals Registrar, the parties attend upon the Appeals Registrar forthwith upon the conclusion of the hearing of this Application for the purpose of the Registrar making directions for the said hearing of the appeal, and the costs of and incidental to this application be reserved to the Full Court.