Nyoni v Pharmacy Board of Australia (No 4)

The applicant, Mr Nyoni, brought a proceeding against the Pharmacy Board of Australia in the Federal Court of Australia, claiming that a publication was defamatory and misleading or deceptive. The proceeding was founded on an allegation that the Board had published information that was injurious to Mr Nyoni's reputation. Following the initiation of the proceeding, Mr Nyoni was declared bankrupt, and the first and third respondents, who were the Board and the Registrar of the Federal Court, respectively, sought a stay of the proceeding under section 60(2) of the Bankruptcy Act 1966 (Cth).

The court was required to determine whether the stay provision in section 60(2) of the Bankruptcy Act applied to the proceeding brought by Mr Nyoni. The court considered whether the proceeding was brought by Mr Nyoni in his personal capacity or as a representative of a class, as the stay provision only applied to proceedings brought by the bankrupt in his or her personal capacity. The court also considered whether the proceeding was ancillary to the bankruptcy proceeding, as the stay provision did not apply to proceedings that were ancillary to the bankruptcy proceeding.

The court held that the proceeding was not brought by Mr Nyoni in his personal capacity but as a representative of a class. The court found that the proceeding was ancillary to the bankruptcy proceeding, and therefore the stay provision in section 60(2) of the Bankruptcy Act did not apply. The court dismissed the application brought by the first and third respondents and ordered them to pay the applicant's costs. The final orders were entered in accordance with Rule 39.32 of the Federal Court Rules 2011.