Serobian v Commonwealth Bank of Australia

The appeal concerned a dispute between Mr. Serobian and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Mr. Serobian alleged that the Bank had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct. The appeal was heard by the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, comprising Tobias and Macfarlan JJA and Sackville AJA.

The primary legal issues before the Court were whether the Bank had engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct within the meaning of the relevant legislation, and whether Mr. Serobian had suffered any loss or damage as a result of reliance on any alleged representations. A further issue concerned the obligations of legal practitioners representing a party opposed to an unrepresented litigant, specifically in relation to their duty to assist the Court in considering the submissions of the unrepresented party, as contemplated by section 56 of the *Civil Procedure Act 2005* (NSW).

The Court found that there was no evidence that Mr. Serobian had acted to his detriment or suffered any loss or damage as a result of reliance upon the alleged representations made by the Bank. Consequently, the claim for misleading and deceptive conduct failed. Regarding the conduct of the legal representatives, the Court implicitly found that their conduct did not fall short of their obligations to the Court, as the primary claim was not substantiated.

The appeal was dismissed, and Mr. Serobian was ordered to pay the costs of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.