Penson v Titan National Pty Ltd

The applicant, Penson, sought judicial review of two decisions made by the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The respondent was Titan National Pty Ltd. The application was brought under section 69 of the *Supreme Court Act 1970* (NSW).

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether it had jurisdiction to entertain an application for judicial review of decisions made by itself. Specifically, the court had to determine if section 69 of the *Supreme Court Act 1970* (NSW) permitted such a review, or if it was precluded by established principles of judicial review concerning the finality of appellate court decisions.

The Court of Appeal held that it did not have jurisdiction to review its own decisions. The court referred to established authorities, including *Fleet v Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals NSW* [2008] NSWCA 227 and *Barton v Walker* [1979] 2 NSWLR 740, which affirmed the principle that a court cannot sit in review of its own orders. The court reasoned that allowing such a review would undermine the finality of judgments and create an untenable situation where appellate decisions could be endlessly revisited by the same appellate court.

Consequently, the Summons and Amended Summons were dismissed with costs.