Pearce and Dullaway as joint and several liquidators of Laphoenix Park Pty Ltd (In Liquidation) (Receivers and Managers Appointed v Bonato

The applicants, Pearce and Dullaway as joint and several liquidators of Laphoenix Park Pty Ltd, sought substituted service of their Claim and Statement of Claim against the defendant, Bonato. The liquidators had previously engaged service agents to attempt personal service on the defendant, but these attempts had been unsuccessful. They sought orders for substituted service under Rule 116 of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (Qld). The court was required to determine whether the liquidators were entitled to the orders they sought for substituted service.

The court considered the circumstances of the case, including the unsuccessful attempts at personal service and the provisions of Rule 116. The court noted that the liquidators had taken reasonable steps to effect personal service and that substituted service was an appropriate course of action under the circumstances. The court granted the orders sought by the liquidators, allowing for substituted service by posting to the defendant's known addresses and by personal service at a specified location. The court also provided specific timelines for when service would be deemed to be effected under the order.

The orders made by the court included dispensing with personal service of the Claim and Statement of Claim, allowing for substituted service by posting to two known addresses of the defendant and by personal service at a specified location. The court deemed service to be effected on the later of the fourth business day after posting to either address or the second business day after personal service. The costs of and incidental to the application were reserved.