Oates v Hawkins (No 2)

The second respondent, Mr Hawkins, sought an interlocutory application to vacate the hearing of the proceeding brought against him by the first respondent, Mr Oates. The proceedings were related to a dispute over a commercial contract between the parties. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The primary issue for the court was whether it should vacate the hearing date for the trial of the proceeding, considering the late filing of expert reports by the parties, and the potential prejudice caused by the late filing.

The court had to determine whether the expert reports were relevant to the proceedings and whether they raised new issues. It also had to consider whether there was sufficient time to obtain an expert in reply, given that a substantial part of the expert evidence would be in the form of submissions. The court needed to balance the prejudice caused by the late filing of the reports against the need to accommodate the parties with additional time.

The court found that the expert reports were relevant and did raise new issues. However, it also found that there was sufficient time to obtain an expert in reply and that the prejudice caused by the late filing could be accommodated by granting additional time. The court held that it would not vacate the hearing date, as it could accommodate the prejudice with additional time. Consequently, the application to vacate the hearing was dismissed.

The court ordered that the hearing of the proceeding would proceed as scheduled, with additional time allocated for the parties to obtain expert evidence in reply. The court emphasised the importance of timely filing of expert reports and the need for parties to plan their expert evidence in advance to avoid such issues.