Porter Equipment Australia Pty Ltd v Barton Ventures Pty Ltd; Porter Equipment Australia Pty Ltd v Tyremil Pty Ltd

Porter Equipment Australia Pty Ltd brought an application against Barton Ventures Pty Ltd and Tyremil Pty Ltd seeking an order that it was entitled to possession of a Liebherr L556 Loader. The dispute arose from a contract for the sale of the loader, where the seller delivered the property to the purchaser without payment of the purchase price. The seller had registered its security interest in the loader on the personal property securities register. The central legal issue was whether title in the loader had passed to the purchaser and whether the seller was entitled to recover the loader. The court had to consider the application of personal property law principles in the context of the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth). Specifically, the court examined the nature of the transaction and whether the registration of the security interest affected the rights of the parties. The court found that despite the delivery of the loader to the purchaser, title had not passed because payment had not been made. The registration of the security interest also did not affect the seller’s rights to recover the loader. The court concluded that the seller was entitled to possession of the loader and could seize it from the purchaser or any other party holding it. The orders included granting the seller possession of the loader and authorising it to seize the loader from the purchaser or any other party in possession. The costs of the application were awarded to the seller.