Re Chew, Chin Han Ex Parte Averill, Phillip William

[1982] FCA 333

k3

I N THE	FEDERAL	COURT	'OF 'AUSTRALIA	)
1

GENERAL DIVISION	1
'NO. P, 1 6 4 7 OF 1982

BANKRUPTCY DISTRICT OF THE	STATE	)
1

O F NEW SOUTH WALES AND THE

1

AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERR.ITORY 1

RE :	CHIN 'mN 'CHEW
EX PARTE:	PHI-I;LIP WILLIAM AVERI-LL; HUG5 JEREMY IDDLETON

L -JOHN STANLEY 'BUCKEEY; LREUERT EDWA'RD .HAYES ,

L 'ROBSRT 'DUvAL %OATLY and 'BARRY EAURENCE SMITH

t r a d i n g a s Messrs. Lamploughs.

CHEW PIN PIN

THE REGISTRA'R-GEMERAL I N AND FOR THE STATE

'OF 'NEW 'SOUTH WALES

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

EX TEMPORE

LOCKHART J. 2 1 DECEMBER 1982

T h i s is a n a p p l i c a t i o n f o r i n t e r l o c u t o r y i n j u n c t i o n s by t h e members

of a f i r m o f s t o c k b r o k e r s t r a d i n g a s Messrs. Lamploughs ("the p e t i t i o n i n g

c r e d i t o r " ) t o r e s t r a i n C h i n Han Chew ( " t h e d e b t o r " ) a n d Chew P i n P i n ("Mrs. Chew'

who i s t h e d e b t o r ' s w i f e , from s e l l i n g or o t h e r w i s e d i s p o s i n g o f a house known

a s 4 Carrara Avenue , Vauc luse ( " the Ca r ra ra Avenue house" ) un t i l f u r the r o rde r ,

and a t l e a s t p e n d i n g t h e determination of a p e t i t i o n t o s e q u e s t r a t e t h e d e b t o r ' s

es ta te . A b r i e f c u r i a l h i s t o r y of t h e matter is c a l l e d f o r .

E a r l i e r t h i s year t h e p e t i t i o n i n g c r e d i t o r p r e s e n t e d a p e t i t i o n

P!O. 782 of 1982 , to t h i s C o u r t t o s e q u e s t r a t e t h e es ta te of t h e debtor. The

a c t of b a n k r u p t c y r e l i e d o n w a s t h a t t h e d e b t o r w i t h i n s i x months before t h e

p r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h e p e t i t i o n d e p a r t e d a n d r e m a i n e d o u t of Aus t r a l i a w i t h i n t e n t

to d e f e a t or d e l a y h i s c r e d i t o r s . T h a t p e t i t i o n was p r e s e n t e d on 1 5 Ju ly 1982 .

On 3 0 J u l y t h i s C o u r t r e s t r a i n e d t h e d e b t o r a n d Mrs. Chew u n t i l f u r t h e r o r d e r

. , . , / 2

-2 -

from d i s p o s i n g o f t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house. Leave was given t o a n y p a r t y t o

app ly on 24 h o u r s n o t i c e to r e s c i n d or v a r y t h o s e o r d e r s . A f u r t h e r h e a r i n g

o f t h e a p p l i c a t i o n f o r i n t e r l o c u t o r y i n j u n c t i o n s was adjourned t o 3 August ,

On t h a t d a y t h e o r d e r s were v a r i e d i n c e r t a i n respects. T h e f u r t h e r h e a r i n g

o f t h e a p p l i c a t i o n was ad jou rned on more t h a n o n e o c c a s i o n u n t i l it came on

f o r h e a r i n g y e s t e r d a y . I n t h e m e a n t i m e t h e p e t i t i o n came on f o r h e a r i n g

b e f o r e a n o t h e r J u d g e o f t h i s C o u r t o n 1 4 December 1982 and was t h e n d i s m i s s e d

o n t h e a p p l i c a t i o n o f t h e p e t i t i o n i n g c red i tor , When t h e h e a r i n g o f - t h e

a p p l i c a t i o n t o c o n t i n u e t h e i n t e r l o c u t o r y i n j u n c t i o n s commenced y e s t e r d a y ,

counsel a p p e a r e d f o r t h e p e t i t i o n i n g c r e d i t o r a n d f o r Mrs. Chew, b u t t h e r e was

n o appe,arance by or o n b e h a l f o f t h e d e b t o r . C o u n s e l f o r Mrs. Chew submi t t ed

t h a t t h e i n j u n c t i o n s a l r e a d y g r a n t e d were a u t o m a t i c a l l y d i s s o l v e d i m m e d i a t e l y

upon t h e d i s m i s s a l of t h e p e t i t i o n , b u t s u h i t t e d , i n t h e a l t e r n a t i v e , t h a t t h e

C o u r t s h o u l d now d i s s o l v e t h e i n j ' u n c t i o n s a s t h e d i s m i s s a l o f t h e p e t i t i o n

removed t h e b a s i s f o r t h e i r e x i s t e n c e a n d it would t h e r e f o r e be imposs ib l e o r

unnecessa ry	t o keep	them	a l i v e .
I n my	o p i n i o n	t h e l a t t e r s u b m i s s i o n i s well founded, Accord ingly

I would d i s s o l v e t h e i n j u n c t i o n s p r e v i o u s l y g r a n t e d . A s to t h e costs o f t h a t

e a r l i e r a p p l i c a t i o n €or i n j u n c t i v e r e l i e f , t h e y s h o u l d be r e se rved . Indeed

a l t h o u g h t h e s e o r d e r s a r e n o t	by	c o n s e n t , n o p a r t y h a s t a k e n a n y r e a l e x c e p t i o n
t o them.

Y e s t e r d a y c o u n s e l f o r t h e p e t i t i o n i n g c r e d i t o r was g r a n t e d l e a v e

by me, w i t h o u t o b j e c t i o n f r o m c o u n s e l for Mrs. Chew, t o f i l e i n C o u r t

r e t u r n a b l e i n s t a n t e r a n a p p l i c a t i o n s e e k i n g i n j u n c t i o n s r e s t r a i n i n g t h e d e b t o r

and Mrs. C h e w u n t i l f u r t h e r order from d e a l i n g w i t h t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house,

a n d a n i n j u n c t i o n r e s t r a i n i n g t h e R e g i s t r a r - G e n e r a l o f N e w South Wales from

r e g i s t e r i n g or i n a n y way p r o c e s s i n g for r e g i s t r a t i o n a n y d e a l i n g w i t h t h a t

p r o p e r t y . T h i s a p p l i c a t i o n was made i n p e t i t i o n 1 6 4 7 o f 1 9 8 2 , being a p e t i t i o n

. . . l 3

-3 -

p r e s e n t e d to t h e C o u r t by t h e p e t i t i o n i n g creditor on 1 5 December 1982 and

seek ing a s e q u e s t r a t i o n o r d e r a g a i n s t t h e e s t a t e o f t h e d e b t o r . T h e a c t of

b a n k r u p t c y r e l i e d o n is t h e f a i l u r e of t h e d e b t o r to comply wi th the require-

ments of a bankruptcy not ice served on him.

The a p p l i c a t i o n h a s n o t y e t b e e n s e r v e d o n t h e d e b t o r b u t was

s e r v e d d u r i n g t h e course o f t h e m o r n i n g o n t h e R e g i s t r a r - G e n e r a l . I t was

c o n t e s t e d by Mrs. Chew. C o u n s e l f o r Mrs. Chew a s k e d t h e C o u r t t o t r e a t t h e

a p p l i c a t i o n for i n j u n c t i v e re l ief a s a f i n a l h e a r i n g , b u t I d e c l i n e d to do

t h i s b e c a u s e t h e a p p l i c a t i o n a n d t h e p e t i t i o n h a v e n o t y e t b e e n Gerved on t h e

d e b t o r a n d by i t s n a t u r e t h e a p p l i c a t i o n i s €or i n t e r l o c u t o r y r e l i e f p e n d i n g

t h e h e a r i n g a n d d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f t h e p e t i t i o n f o r s e q u e s t r a t i o n a n d a n y

appointment of a t rustee o f t h e d e b t o r ’ s e s t a t e t h a t may t h e n be made.

Accord ing ly I a p p r o a c h t h i s a p p l i c a t i o n a s o n e f o r i n t e r l o c u t o r y r e l i e f .

The C a r r a r a Avenue house i s r e g i s t e r e d i n t h e names of t h e d e b t o r

and Mrs. Chew a s j o i n t t e n a n t s . I t was pu rchased i n t he i r j o in t names i n

September 197% I t i s common g r o u n d t h a t i t is a va luab le p rope r ty and on

c u r r e n t m a r k e t v a l u e s may have a v a l u e i n t h e v i c i n i t y o f $500.OOC,OO b u t t h a t

is a ma t t e r on wh ich the re is l i t t l e i n f o r m a t i o n a n d n o t h i n g t u r n s o n t h e

p r e c i s e f i g u r e .

On 1 2 November 1981 judgmen t was ob ta ined aga ins t t he deb to r by a

f i r m o f stock a n d s h a r e b r o k e r s t r a d i n g a s Messrs. Ralph W. King and Y u i l l

i n t h e sum o f $ 1 1 4 , 8 9 3 . 9 5 i n t h e Supreme C o u r t o f N e w South Wales.

I n t h e course o f h i s r e a s o n s f o r j u d g m e n t Mr. Jus t ice Yeldham s a i d .

i n e f fec t t h a t he was n o t d i s p o s e d to a c c e p t c e r t a i n e v i d e n c e g i v e n b y t h e

debtor . Although I w i l l n o t t r a v e r s e t h e issues i n t h a t c a s e , t h e y r e l a t e d

t o t h e lodgment of orders b y t h e d e b t o r w i t h t h o s e s t o c k b r o k e r s s a i d to be €or

a number of p e o p l e i n c l u d i n g Mrs. Chew, a n d t h e d e b t a r o s e o u t of t h e f a i l u r e

of t h e d e b t o r t o honour h i s o b l i g a t i o n s to that f i rm.

v . . /4

-4 -

On 19 November 1981, a week l a t e r , a caveat was lodged on behalf of

Yrs. Chew a g a i n s t t h e t i t l e to t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house in wh ich she c l a imed

i n t e r e s t a s sole b e n e f i c i a r y u n d e r a t r u s t be tween the deb to r a s t rus tee and

h e r s e l f a s b e n e f i c i a r y i n r e s p e c t o f t h e d e b t o r ' s u n d i v i d e d o n e - h a l f l e g a l

i n t e re s t i n t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house.

On 20 Janua ry 1982 the deb to r execu ted a memorandum o f t r a n s f e r

o f h i s i n t e r e s t i n t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house i n f avour of Mrs. Chew. The

t r a n s f e r h a s n o t b e e n r e g i s t e r e d , a n d it was to r e s t r a i n t h e r e g i s t r a t i o n of

it and t o p r e v e n t a n y i n t e r e s t o f t h e d e b t o r i n t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house being

d e a l t w i t h t h a t p r e c i p i t a t e f i t h e e a r l i e r a p p l i c a t i o n a n d t h e c u r r e n t a p p l i c a t i o n .

I s h o u l d a d d t h a t there are o t h e r c r e d i t o r s o f t h e d e b t o r whose d e b t s

a r e s u b s t a n t i a l i n c l u d i n g t h e p e t i t i o n i n g c r e d i t o r who s igned judgmen t aga ins t

t h e d e b t o r i n t h e Supreme C o u r t of N e w South Wales on 1 March 1982 i n t h e sum of

$179,474.84 and which i s s t i l l unpaid ,

There is n o e v i d e n c e t h a t t h e d e b t o r h a s p r o p e r t y i n A u s t r a l i a o r ,

i n d e e d , e l s e w h e r e s a v e h i s i n t e r e s t , i f a n y , i n t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house. As

t h i s is a n a p p l i c a t i o n f o r i n t e r l o c u t o r y r e l i e f , my approach to t h e case is ,

of course, t o d e t e r m i n e i f t h e p e t i t i o n i n g c r e d i t o r h a s e s t a b l i s h e d a pr ima

f a c i e case i n t h e r e q u i s i t e s e n s e a n d i f so, whe the r t he ba l ance of convenience

f a v o u r s t h e g r a n t i n g or r e f u s a l o f i n j u n c t i o n s , I make, of course, no f i n a l

d e t e r m i n a t i o n of any k ind .

I t u r n t o t h e f a c t s , many of w h i c h a r e n o t i n d i s p u t e . The f a c t s

a r e somewhat e x t e n s i v e a n d I o n l y p r o p o s e t o r e f e r to those wh ich a re e s s e n t i a l ,

though i t d o e s n o t follow t h a t b e c a u s e I d o n o t d e a l w i t h c e r t a i n f a c t s I have

overlooked them. I h a v e , i n f a c t , c o n s i d e r e d t h e w h o l e o f t h e e v i d e n c e .

Mrs. Chew i s a c i t i z e n o f S i n g a p o r e who h a s o v e r t h e y e a r s s p e n t a

l o t of time i n A u s t r a l i a . She f i r s t came h e r e i n 1 9 5 4 . She was a s t u d e n t

f o r some time and mar r i ed t he deb to r he re i n March 1957 . H e i s a l s o a c i t i z e n of

-5 -

Singapore . The d e b t o r i s a m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r who g a i n e d h i s q u a l i f i c a t i o n s

i n S y d n e y . F o l l o w i n g t h e i r m a r r i a g e t h e d e b t o r p r a c t i s e d i n Sydney f o r o n e y e a r

and in Launces ton for o n e y e a r , I n l 9 6 2 t h e d e b t o r a n d Mrs. Chew r e t u r n e d to

Singapore . There are f i v e c h i l d r e n of t h e i r m a r r i a g e , t h r e e s o n s a n d tm

daughters . They have a l l been educated a t schools in Sydney and more than one

of them has a t t ended or is a t t e n d i n g t e r t i a r y i n s t i t u t i o n s i n t h i s c o u n t r y .

Mrs. Chew v i s i t e d A u s t r a l i a f r e q u e n t l y a f t e r h e r m a r r i a g e a n d

sometimes l i v e d h e r e a n d i n S i n g a p o r e d u r i n g a l t e r n a t e m o n t h s of t h e y e a r .

Mrs. Chew‘s c a s e i s t h a t it was her own funds which were used t o buy .the

C a r r a r a Avenue house , t h a t n o n e of t h e debtor’s f u n d s were u s e d f o r t h i s p u r p o s e ,

a n d t h a t he h o l d s h i s l e g a l i n t e r e s t i n t h a t h o u s e upon t r u s t f o r h e r .

Her c o u n s e l s o u g h t to s u p p o r t t h i s c o n c l u s i o n o n a l t e r n a t i v e b a s e s a s a

r e s u l t i n g t r u s t , a n e x p r e s s t rus t or a c o n s t r u c t i v e t r u s t .

I t seems t h a t Mrs. C h e w ’ s p a r e n t s a r e p e r s o n s of some w e a l t h who

gave her money a n d r e a l e s t a t e w h i c h s h e has u s e d j u d i c i o u s l y a n d s u c c e s s f u l l y .

I t i s unnecessa ry t o t r a c e t h e h i s t o r y of t h e v a r i o u s i n v e s t m e n t s made by

Mrs. Chew. There is a body of e v i d e n c e c a r e f u l l y d o c u m e n t e d a n d c l e a r l y

p re sen ted wh ich i s r e l i e d on by her in suppor t o f her case . There i s s t r o n g

e v i d e n c e t h a t h e r f u n d s a n d n o o t h e r s were used t o p u r c h a s e a home u n i t a t

Chatswood in December 1976, and that when it was s o l d i n F e b r u a r y 1 9 7 7 t h e

p roceeds of sale were employed by her for o ther purposes t o which I s h a l l r e f e r

i n a moment. A p rope r ty i n K ings Road , Vauc luse , was p u r c h a s e d . I n i t i a l l y it

was in t ended by Mrs. Chew t h a t t h e p u r c h a s e be by a company, Five Star

I n v e s t m e n t s P t y . L i m i t e d ( ” F i v e S t a r I n v e s t m e n t s ” ) a n d a c o n t r a c t of s a l e

naming it a s p u r c h a s e r was p repa red , execu ted and exchanged . F ive S t a r

I n v e s t m e n t s is a company incorpora ted in Aus t ra l ia . Mrs . Chew a n d t h e d e b t o r

have been d i rec tors a n d s h a r e h o l d e r s s i n c e i ts incorpora t ion . There have been

from time t o time o t h e r s h a r e h o l d e r s a n d , so f a r a s I c a n g l e a n f r o m t h e

-6 -

e v i d e n c e , o t h e r d i rectors .

I t is n o t e n t i r e l y c l e a r a s t o t h e role it has pe r fo rmed in the

Chew f a m i l y a f f a i r s , b u t it seems t h a t o n e o f its p u r p o s e s was to a c t a s a

t r u s t company of w h a t h a s b e e n c a l l e d i n t h e e v i d e n c e , t h e "Chew f a m i l y t r u s t s " .

One d e e d o f s e t t l e m e n t is i n e v i d e n c e b e f o r e me and it emerges from a p e r u s a l

o f t h a t d e e d t h a t a t r u s t was e s t a b l i s h e d i n J a n u a r y 1979 in wh ich F ive S ta r

Inves tments was t o ac t a s t rustee, and Mrs. Chew was appointed what is c a l l e d

by t h e document a s " t h e p r o t e c t o r " . The d e t a i l s o f t h e document are i r r e l e v a n t ,

bu t it is p l a i n from t h e i n s t r u m e n t t h a t Mrs. Chew h a s v e r y l a r g e p o w e r s

confer red upon her	a s p r o t e c t o r i n c l u d i n g	a	power	of	appointment	and	removal	of
t r u s t e e s .

F u n d s t o t a l l i n g a p p r o x i m a t e l y $ 1 3 0 , 0 0 0 . 0 0 were p a i d by Mrs. Chew

from more t h a n o n e source t o F i v e S t a r I n v e s t m e n t s to e n a b l e t h e p u r c h a s e of

t h e K i n g s Road p r o p e r t y to proceedsand t o be purchased by t h e company. I am

s a t i s f i e d f o r t h e p u r p o s e o f t h i s i n t e r l o c u t o r y a p p l i c a t i o n t h a t t h e sum of

$ 1 3 0 , 0 0 0 . 0 0 or t h e r e a b o u t s was her money when it came t o t h e company and t h a t

t h e d e b t o r had no claim t o i t , What happened to t h e moneys a f t e r t h a t is importa:

Mrs. Chew changed he r mind on adv ice f rom e i the r he r accoun tan t s or l awyer s ,

or b o t h , a b o u t t h e i d e n t i t y o f t h e p u r c h a s e r . She d e c i d e d t h a t t h e p u r c h a s e s h o u

be by he r se l f and t he deb to r and no t by F ive S t a r Inves tmen t s . I w i l l n o t go

i n t o t h e r e a s o n s f o r t h e change of mind but i t seems t h a t a t l e a s t o n e of h e r

a d v i s e r s t h o u g h t t h a t t h e company would be l i a b l e t o N e w South Wales land tax

i f it became t h e p u r c h a s e r , w h e r e a s a n a t u r a l p e r s o n w o u l d n o t .

The c o n t r a c t w i t h F i v e S t a r I n v e s t m e n t s w a s c a n c e l l e d w i t h t h e

v e n d o r ' s c o n c u r r e n c e a n d a f r e s h c o n t r a c t was prepared showing Mrs. Chew and

t h e d e b t o r a s p u r c h a s e r s . The s a l e w a s c o m p l e t e d a n d r e g i s t e r e d i n t h e i r

. . ./7

-7 -

j o i n t names . F ive S t a r Inves tmen t s ' books and ba l ance shee t s f rom 1977

t o 1 9 8 1 i n c l u s i v e r e c o r d t h e r e c e i p t o f t h e sum of about $ 1 3 0 , 0 0 0 . 0 0 a s being

c a p i t a l i z e d i n t h e s e n s e t h a t Mrs. Chew and t h e d e b t o r a n d c e r t a i n other

p e r s o n s became s h a r e h o l d e r s i n t h e company s u b s c r i b i n g c a p i t a l f o r 1 3 , 0 0 0

s h a r e s a t $1 e a c h a t a premium of $9 each .

A s Mrs. Chew a n d t h e d e b t o r p u r c h a s e d t h e K i n g s Road p r o p e r t y

i n p l a c e o f t h e company, t h e books a n d t h e b a l a n c e s h e e t s r e c o r d a l o a n by

t h e company t o Mrs. Chew and t h e d e b t o r i n t h e sum of abou t $ 1 3 0 , 0 0 0 , The

p r e c i s e f i g u r e s do no t ma t t e r and indezd there i s a l i t t l e c o n f l i c t i n t h e

books a s to t h i s p r e c i s e f i g u r e b u t I t h i n k n o t h i n g t u r n s o n t h a t . T h u s ,

n o t w i t h s t a n d i n g t h a t M r s . Chew was t h e sole s o u r c e o f t h e $ 1 3 0 , 0 0 0 p a i d t o

F i v e S t a r I n v e s t m e n t s , t h a t company, Mrs. Chew a n d t h e d e b t o r t h e r e a f t e r a c t e d ,

u n t i l r e c e n t l y , c o n s i s t e n t l y w i t h t h e v i e w t h a t t h e moneys became t h e p r o p e r t y

o f F i v e S t a r I n v e s t m e n t s r e s u l t i n g i n a n a d v a n c e t o Mrs. Chew a n d t h e d e b t o r

w h i c h t h e y u s e d t o a c q u i r e t h e K i n g s Road p r o p e r t y i n t h e i r j o i n t names.

Mrs. Chew s i g n e d t h e b a l a n c e s h e e t s f o r t h e y e a r s 1 9 7 7 t o 1981

w h i c h r e f l e c t e d t h i s p o s i t i o n a n d I am s a t i s f i e d t h a t s h e knew f u l l well what

she s igned and i t s s i g n i f i c a n c e . She d i d make some a t t e m p t i n cross-

examinat ion t o d e n y t h a t s h e knew what she was s i g n i n g a n d t h a t w h a t s h e d i d

s ign was only one or two pages of t h e b a l a n c e shee ts on wh ich he r s igna tu res

a p p e a r e d a n d t h a t t h e o t h e r p a g e s were n o t b e f o r e h e r a t t h e time, b u t t h e r e

i s o t h e r e v i d e n c e w h i c h I a c c e p t t o t h e c o n t r a r y , i n c l u d i n g e v i d e n c e of he r

fo rmer accoun tan t . I d o n o t s u g g e s t t h a t Mrs. Chew's evidence has been

n e c e s s a r i l y m i s l e a d i n g . It may well be t h a t s h e h a s c o n v i n c e d h e r s e l f t h a t

t h a t was t h e p o s i t i o n a s s h e h a s ref lected upon t h i s c a s e o v e r t h e y e a r s s i n c e .

A t a n y r a t e I am s a t i s f i e d t h a t I should, however , on mat ters where her

ev idence i s u n c o r r o b o r a t e d , exercise some c a r e b e f o r e a c c e p t i n g it.

-8 -

Mrs. Chew i s a shrewd and capab le bus iness woman and it is most

impor t an t t o h e r t h a t s h e s u c c e e d s i n h e r c o n t e n t i o n t h a t t h e d e b t o r ' s i n t e r e s t

i n t h e r e l e v a n t p r o p e r t i e s a r e h e l d upon t r u s t f o r h e r , T h e K i n g s Road p r o p e r t y

was s o l d in 1979 and a l i t t l e l a t e r a c o n t r a c t was executed t o p u r c h a s e t h e

C a r r a r a Avenue house and tha t pu rchase was comple t ed i n Oc tobe r 1979 . As I have

s a i d , it s t a n d s i n t h e name o f bo th t he deb to r and Mrs. Chew.

The source of f u n d s t o e n a b l e t h a t p r o p e r t y t o be purchased I need

n o t r e f e r t o e x c e p t t o s a y t h a t a l a r g e p a r t o f it r e p r e s e n t e d t h e p r o c e e d s o f s a l e

o f t h e K i n g s Road p r o p e r t y . I t d o e s seem on t h e e v i d e n c e t h a t some'thing over

50% of t h e p u r c h a s e p r i c e of t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house was provided by Mrs. Chew

so t h a t , a l t h o u g h s h e a n d h e r h u s b a n d a r e r e g i s t e r e d a s j o i n t t e n a n t s , t h e i r

' e q u i t a b l e r i g h t s t o t h e p r o p e r t y a r e n o t n e c e s s a r i l y 50% e a c h , a s s u m i n g t h e

d e b t o r h a s some e q u i t y t h e r e i n . I make n o f i n a l f i n d i n g s , h o w e v e r , a t a l l i n

r e l a t i o n t o t h i s a s it depends on t h e u l t i m a t e h e a r i n g . A l l I s a y a t t h i s s t a g e

o f t h e c a s e is t h a t it seems t h a t Mrs. Chew may h a v e a n e q u i t y i n t h e p r o p e r t y

o f s o m e t h i n g i n t h e order of 70%. Of course, s h e may s u c c e e d i n e s t a b l i s h i n g

t h a t s h e h a s t h e w h o l e b e n e f i c i a l i n t e r e s t i n t h e C a r r a r a Avenue house.

There is ev idence o f a conversa t ion be tween Mrs. Chew a n d t h e d e b t o r

e a r l y t h i s y e a ? a f t e r t h e d e b t o r g o t i n t o f i n a n c i a l d i f f i c u l t i e s w h i c h m i g h t s u p p o r

i n d u e course h e r c o n t e n t i o n t h a t t h e r e was a n e x p r e s s t r u s t of t h e C a r r a r a Avenue

house based on t h e a c t u a l common i n t e n t i o n of Mrs. Chew a n d t h e d e b t o r : see

Allen v. Snyder 1977 2 N.S.W.L.R. 685 ( a t p p . 690 and 6 9 2 ) . There i s o t h e r

ev idence t o which I have been re fer red by c o u n s e l f o r Mrs. Chew which on a f i n a l

hea r ing may suppor t her argument a s t o t h e e x i s t e n c e of a n e x p r e s s t r u s t , or a

r e s u l t i n g t r u s t , or a c o n s t r u c t i v e t r u s t . I t may be i n due course t h a t s h e w i l l

e s t a b l i s h t h a t t h e a d v a n c e of about $ 1 3 0 , 0 0 0 . 0 0 t o t h e d e b t o r a n d h e r s e l f f r o m

F i v e S t a r I n v e s t m e n t s became i n e q u i t y h e r f u n d s t o t h e e x c l u s i o n of t h e d e b t o r .

I say no th ing abou t t h i s - it c a n a b i d e t h e resul t of t h e f i n a l h e a r i n g - e x c e p t

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t o s a y t h e role p layed by the company i n t h e w h o l e m a t t e r , c o u p l e d w i t h t h e f a c t

t h a t n o a s s e r t i o n o f a t r u s t a p p e a r s to have been made u n t i l v e r y s o o n a f t e r t h e

j u d g m e n t w a s o b t a i n e d a g a i n s t t h e d e b t o r i n t h e Supreme C o u r t l i t i g a t i o n

dec ided by Yeldham J. on 1 2 November 1981 which was c lose ly followed by t h e

lodg ing o f t h e c a v e a t o v e r t h e Carrara Avenue house and the execut ion of t h e

memorandum o f t r a n s f e r o f t h e d e b t o r ’ s i n t e r e s t i n f a v o u r o f Mrs. Chew a l l l e a d

me t o t r e a t Mrs. C h e w ‘ s c a s e a t t h i s s t a g e o f t h e p r o c e e d i n g s w i t h some c a u t i o n .

I t i s common g r o u n d t h a t a l t h o u g h t h e u l t iamte onus o f p roof l i e s a g a i n s t t h e

p e t i t i o n i n g c r e d i t o r t o e s t a b l i s h i t s p r i m a f a c i e c a s e , t h e e v i d e n t i a r y o n u s

l i e s w i t h Mrs. Chew b e c a u s e o f t h e r e g i s t r a t i o n of t h e t i t l e t o t h e C a r r a r a

Avenue h o u s e i n t h e j o i n t n a m e s of t h e d e b t o r a n d Mrs. Chew. I n my v iew €o r

t h e p u r p o s e of t h e s e i n t e r l o c u t o r y p r o c e e d i n g s , t h a t l a t t e r o n u s h a s n o t b e e n

d i scha rged . Accord ing ly , I am s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e r e i s a p r i m a f a c i e c a s e

i n t h e r e q u i s i t e s e n s e e s t a b l i s h e d by t h e p e t i t i o n i n g c r e d i t o r , b u t I wish t o makl

it p e r f e c t l y c lear t h a t by s a y i n g t h i s I am i n n o way p r e j u d g i n g t h e u l t i m a t e .

r e su l t of t h i s case, Although I t h i n k a p r i m a f a c i e c a s e h a s been e s t a b l i s h e d

it i s p o s s i b l e on t h e f i n a l h e a r i n g t h a t Mrs. Chew w i l l succeed i n h e r c o n t e n t i o n

A s t o t h e b a l a n c e o f c o n v e n i e n c e , I need no t refer to t h i s a t a n y

l e n g t h . I t was d i scussed be tween counse l and myse l f and I t h i n k t h e b a l a n c e

of c o n v e n i e n c e p l a i n l y l i e s i n f a v o u r o f g r a n t i n g i n t e r l o c u t o r y r e l i e f . T h e r e

i s no ev idence of a n y a s s e t s h e r e o f t h e d e b t o r o t h e r t h a n h i s i n t e r e s t i n t h e

C a r r a r a Avenue house . I know t h a t h e h a s f i n a n c i a l p r o b l e m s h e r e a n d I m u s t

look t o t h e i n t e r e s t s o f c r e d i t o r s o f t h e d e b t o r a s well a s t h e i n t e r e s t s of

t h e deb to r and Mrs. Chew. I am s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e C o u r t h a s j u r i s d i c t i o n t o

g r a n t i n t e r l o c u t o r y r e l i e f a n d a l t h o u g h some s u g g e s t i o n was made in a rgument

t o t h e c o n t r a r y it was n o t s u p p o r t e d by a u t h o r i t y a n d I re ject i t ,

. , ./l0

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The	C o u r t
1.	Notes t h a t t h e a p p l i c a n t s by t h e i r c o u n s e l g i v e t h e
u s u a l u n d e r t a k i n g as. t o damages;
2 .	N o t e s t h a t t h e a p p l i c a n t s by t h e i r c o u n s e l u n d e r t a k e t o
p r o s e c u t e t h e p e t i t i o n h e r e i n w i t h d i l i g e n c e a n d e x p e d i t i o n ;

T h e C o u r t o r d e r s t h a t :

3. Except as p r o v i d e d f o r i n p a r a g r a p h 6 h e r e o f t h e f i r s t n a m e d

re sponden t by h e r s e l f a n d h e r s e r v a n t s or a g e n t s , be r e s t r a i n e d

u n t i l t h e f u r t h e r order o f t h e C o u r t f r o g d e a l i n g w i t h , o r

p e r m i t t i n g t o be d e a l t w i t h , or d i s p o s i n g o f , or p e r m i t t i n g

t o he d isposed of t h e i n t e r e s t o f t h e d e b t o r a s j o i n t t e n a n t

i n t h e l a n d c o m p r i s e d i n C e r t i f i c a t e of T i t l e Volume 1 2 2 7 8 Folio

4 a n d b e i n g t h e p r e m i s e s known a s 4 Car rara Avenue , Vaucluse in

t h e State of N e w South Wales ( h e r e i n a f t e r r e f e r r e d t o a s “ t h e

l a n d ) ;

4 . E x c e p t a s p r o v i d e d i n p a r a g r a p h 6 h e r e o f t h e d e b t o r by h i m s e l f ,

h i s s e r v a n t s or a g e n t s , be r e s t r a i n e d u n t i l t h e f u r t h e r o r d e r

o f t h e C o u r t f rom dea l ing wi th , or p e r m i t t i n g t o be d e a l t w i t h ,

o r o t h e r w i s e d i s p o s i n g o f , or p e r m i t t i n g t o be d i s p o s e d of t h e

i n t e r e s t o f t h e d e b t o r a s j o i n t t e n a n t i n t h e l a n d .

5 . The s econdnamed r e sponden t by h imse l f , h i s s e rvan t s o r agen t s ,

be r e s t r a i n e d u n t i l t h e f u r t h e r o r d e r o f t h e C o u r t from

r e g i s t e r i n g a n y d e a l i n g w i t h t h e i n t e r e s t o f t h e d e b t o r a s

j o i n t t e n a n t i n t h e l a n d .

6 . If t h e f i r s t r e s p o n d e n t a n d t h e d e b t o r a g r e e to l e a s e t h e l a n d

upon terms to be a g r e e d b e t w e e n t h e a p p l i c a n t s , t h e d e b t o r a n d

t h e f i r s t r e s p o n d e n t , n o b reach of a n y o f t h e s e orders w i l l occur

7 . Leave be given t o a n y p a r t y t o a p p l y on two ( 2 ) d a y s ‘ n o t i c e

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for r e s c i s s i o n or v a r i a t i o n of t h e s e o r d e r s ,

8 . Costs be reserved .

9. The f u r t h e r h e a r i n g of t h e a p p l i c a t i o n be ad jou rned

u n t i l t h e 2 8 t h day of % a r c h 1983.