Sarkis v Moussa

In *Sarkis v Moussa*, the applicant, who was a bankrupt, sought leave to appeal. The respondent was the opposing party in the proceedings.

The central legal issues before the court were whether a summons seeking leave to appeal constituted "property" within the meaning of section 58 of the *Bankruptcy Act 1966* (Cth), and whether it was an "action" within the meaning of section 60 of the same Act. Relatedly, the court had to determine whether the trustee had made an election to prosecute or discontinue any such "action".

Beazley JA considered the effect of bankruptcy on proceedings commenced before sequestration. The court determined that the summons seeking leave to appeal was not an "action" for the purposes of section 60, and therefore the stay provisions of that section did not apply. Consequently, the question of the trustee's election was not engaged. The summons seeking leave to appeal was dismissed with costs.