Spencer and Spencer (No. 3)

The proceedings in Spencer and Spencer (No. 3) involved an appeal application from the mother against orders made by the Family Court of Western Australia, which included a declaration of the mother as a vexatious litigant. The mother sought to challenge final parenting and property orders made in 2013 and 2017 respectively, arguing that the primary judge erred in dismissing her application to institute fresh parenting proceedings. The mother had previously been found to have abused her child emotionally and psychologically and was declared a vexatious litigant in 2014.

The legal issues before the court included whether the mother's application for leave to appeal met the requirements under section 102QE(3) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), and whether the primary judge's dismissal of the mother's application was justified. The court had to consider whether the mother's complaints on appeal evidenced any error on the part of the primary judge, and whether the mother's applications were attempts to re-agitate issues already decided by the Court. Additionally, the court examined the merits of the mother's separate applications filed in the appeal, which sought the recusal of the bench, the introduction of further evidence, and a review of decisions by a Registrar.

The court found that the mother's application for leave to appeal did not comply with the statutory requirements, as it was discursive and sought to re-agitate issues already decided by the Court. The court noted that nothing in the mother's application demonstrated any error on the part of the primary judge, and concluded that the mother's complaints were another example of her vexatious litigation. The court dismissed the mother's application for leave to appeal and found that the mother's other applications in the appeal were devoid of merit and intended to re-agitate already decided issues. Consequently, the court dismissed all of the mother's applications and ordered her to pay the father's costs in a fixed sum.

The orders of the court included the dismissal of the mother's application for leave to appeal, as well as her three subsequent applications in the appeal. The court also ordered the mother to pay the father's costs of and incidental to the application for leave to appeal in the fixed sum of $9,022.94 within thirty days of the orders. The form of the order was subject to entry in the Court’s records.