Slaveski v Rotstein & Associates Pty Ltd

The case of Slaveski v Rotstein & Associates Pty Ltd involves the appellant, Mr Slaveski, who is appealing against the decision of Burchardt FM of the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia, which dismissed his application to set aside a bankruptcy notice served on him by the respondent, Rotstein & Associates Pty Ltd. The bankruptcy notice was served in respect of a costs order made by the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria against Mr Slaveski. The appeal stems from the rejection of Mr Slaveski's application to set aside the dismissal of his earlier application to vacate the bankruptcy notice. The underlying costs judgment, which was upheld by the Supreme Court of Victoria, arose from a proceeding where Mr Slaveski was ordered to pay professional fees for legal services rendered.

The legal issues in this case revolve around whether the bankruptcy notice should be set aside based on three contentions raised by Mr Slaveski. These include the existence of a counterclaim in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for $98,000 against Mr Rotstein, the application for an instalment order regarding the $7,115.90 judgment debt, and the allegation that the judgment was obtained through conspiracy, which the court treated as an allegation of fraud. Additionally, there was a question about the potential bias of the Federal Magistrate due to his shareholding in the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

The Federal Magistrate dismissed Mr Slaveski's application to set aside the bankruptcy notice, finding that the VCAT claim did not constitute a tenable cross-demand against the respondent. The Magistrate also held that the application for an instalment order did not constitute a cross-demand and rejected the allegation of fraud based on the Supreme Court's affirmation of the costs order. The Magistrate further determined that the CBA proceeding was extraneous to the application to set aside the bankruptcy notice. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed, and Mr Slaveski was ordered to pay the respondent's costs of the appeal.