Security & Technology Services (NT) Pty Ltd v Hurley

Security & Technology Services (NT) Pty Ltd (the appellant) brought an appeal against Hurley (the respondent) to the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia. The appellant sought to overturn two judgments from the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) which found the appellant had contravened section 44 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and ordered it to pay compensation, pecuniary penalties, and costs. The appeal arose from the appellant's dissatisfaction with the conduct of the primary judge during the trial.

The legal issues before the Full Court were whether the proposed orders were appropriate and whether the primary judge had unduly intervened in the conduct of the trial. Specifically, the Full Court needed to determine if the primary judge's intervention was excessive and improper, unfairly undermining the appellant's presentation of its case, creating an appearance of bias, and representing a significant departure from the proper judicial role.

The Full Court found that the proposed orders were appropriate. It accepted that the primary judge had excessively, unduly, and improperly intervened in the conduct of the trial, which unfairly undermined the proper presentation of the appellant's case, gave the appearance of bias, and constituted an egregious departure from the proper role of the judge. As such, the Full Court allowed the appeal in part, set aside the prior judgments, and remitted the matter for rehearing before a different judge. The Full Court also granted a certificate for costs under the Federal Proceedings (Costs) Act 1981 (Cth) and referred the matter for mediation. The appeal was dismissed in all other respects.