United Group Resources Pty Ltd v Calabro (No 4)

Case [2010] FCA 791


FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (No 4) [2010] FCA 791

Citation: United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (No 4) [2010] FCA 791
Parties: UNITED GROUP RESOURCES PTY LTD ABN 17 114 888 201, AGC INDUSTRIES PTY LTD ABN 57 079 939 898, MODERN ACCESS SERVICES PTY LTD ABN 87 129 312 590, DOWNER EDI ENGINEERING POWER PTY LTD ABN 53 000 983 700, MONADELPHOUS ENGINEERING ASSOCIATES PTY LTD ABN 52 008 861 836, CBI CONSTRUCTORS PTY LTD ABN 90 000 612 411, DECMIL AUSTRALIA PTY LTD ABN 58 116 776 991, FREO GROUP LIMITED ABN 64 009 325 124, MAMMOET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD ABN 77 075 483 644, PCH GROUP LTD ABN 41 009 120 021, RCR CONSTRUCTION & MAINTENANCE PTY LTD ABN 97 063 053 814, RCR POSITRON PTY LTD ABN 38 106 084 879 and JOHN HOLLAND PTY LTD ABN 11 004 282 268 v BRAEDEN CALABRO AND OTHERS LISTED IN THE RESPONDENTS' SCHEDULE A AS AMENDED and THE AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSIONER
File number: WAD 14 of 2010
Judge: MCKERRACHER J
Date of judgment: 27 July 2010
Catchwords: PRACTICE & PROCEDURE - service of originating Process – O 7 of the Federal Court Rules - where service was not effected personally - where respondents had notice of proceedings - where respondents appeared conditionally - dispensing with the requirements of the Rules – O 1 r 8 Federal Court Rules
Legislation: Federal Court Rules O 1 r 8, O 7, O 9 r 7(1)(c)
Cases cited: Ainsworth v Redd (1990) 19 NSWLR 78
Howship Holdings Pty Ltd v Leslie [No 2] (1996) 41 NSWLR 542
Laurie v Carroll (1957) 98 CLR 310
Lazar v Taito (Aust) Pty Ltd (1985) 5 FCR 395
Metacorp Pty Ltd v Andeco Construction Group Pty Ltd [2010] VSC 199
National Commercial Bank v Wimborne (1979) 11 NSWLR 156
Pino v Prosser [1967] VR 835
Porter v Freudenberg (1915) 1 KB 857
Robinson v Kuwait Liaison Office (1997) 145 ALR 68
Sogelease Australia Ltd v Griffin (2003) 128 FCR 399
United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (2010) 220 IR 153
United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (No 2) (2010) 192 IR 160
United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (No 3) (2010) 192 IR 170
Date of hearing: 2 June 2010
Date of last submissions: 25 June 2010
Place: Perth
Division: FAIR WORK DIVISION
Category: Catchwords
Number of paragraphs: 52
Counsel for the Applicant: K de Kerloy with K Reid
Solicitor for the Applicant: Freehills
Counsel for the various Conditional Respondents: J Fiocco with A Dzieciol, R Pelligra and D Schapper
Solicitor for the Various Conditional Respondents: Fiocco’s Lawyers
Gibson & Gibson
D Schapper

Solicitor for the Intervener:

B Mueller
Counsel for the Intervener: Clayton Utz

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

WESTERN AUSTRALIA DISTRICT REGISTRY

FAIR WORK DIVISION

WAD 14 of 2010

BETWEEN:

UNITED GROUP RESOURCES PTY LTD ABN 17 114 888 201
First Applicant

AGC INDUSTRIES PTY LTD ABN 57 079 939 898
Second Applicant

MODERN ACCESS SERVICES PTY LTD ABN 87 129 312 590
Third Applicant

DOWNER EDI ENGINEERING POWER PTY LTD ABN 53 000 983 700
Fourth Applicant

MONADELPHOUS ENGINEERING ASSOCIATES PTY LTD ABN 52 008 861 836
Fifth Applicant

CBI CONSTRUCTORS PTY LTD ABN 90 000 612 411
Sixth Applicant

DECMIL AUSTRALIA PTY LTD ABN 58 116 776 991
Seventh Applicant

FREO GROUP LIMITED ABN 64 009 325 124
Eighth Applicant

MAMMOET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD ABN 77 075 483 644
Ninth Applicant

PCH GROUP LTD ABN 41 009 120 021
Tenth Applicant

RCR CONSTRUCTION & MAINTENANCE PTY LTD ABN 97 063 053 814
Eleventh Applicant

RCR POSITRON PTY LTD ABN 38 106 084 879
Twelfth Applicant

JOHN HOLLAND PTY LTD ABN 11 004 282 268
Thirteenth Applicant

AND:

BRAEDEN CALABRO AND OTHERS LISTED IN THE RESPONDENTS' SCHEDULE A AS AMENDED
Respondents

AND: THE AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSIONER
Intervener

JUDGE:

MCKERRACHER J

DATE OF ORDER:

27 JULY 2010

WHERE MADE:

PERTH

THE COURT ORDERS THAT:

1.The motions are dismissed. 

2.The matter be listed for directions on 31 August 2010 at 10.45 am.

3.There be liberty to apply.

Note:Settlement and entry of orders is dealt with in Order 36 of the Federal Court Rules.
The text of entered orders can be located using Federal Law Search on the Court’s website.


IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

WESTERN AUSTRALIA DISTRICT REGISTRY

FAIR WORK DIVISION

WAD 14 of 2010

BETWEEN:

UNITED GROUP RESOURCES PTY LTD ABN 17 114 888 201
First Applicant

AGC INDUSTRIES PTY LTD ABN 57 079 939 898
Second Applicant

MODERN ACCESS SERVICES PTY LTD ABN 87 129 312 590
Third Applicant

DOWNER EDI ENGINEERING POWER PTY LTD ABN 53 000 983 700
Fourth Applicant

MONADELPHOUS ENGINEERING ASSOCIATES PTY LTD ABN 52 008 861 836
Fifth Applicant

CBI CONSTRUCTORS PTY LTD ABN 90 000 612 411
Sixth Applicant

DECMIL AUSTRALIA PTY LTD ABN 58 116 776 991
Seventh Applicant

FREO GROUP LIMITED ABN 64 009 325 124
Eighth Applicant

MAMMOET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD ABN 77 075 483 644
Ninth Applicant

PCH GROUP LTD ABN 41 009 120 021
Tenth Applicant

RCR CONSTRUCTION & MAINTENANCE PTY LTD ABN 97 063 053 814
Eleventh Applicant

RCR POSITRON PTY LTD ABN 38 106 084 879
Twelfth Applicant

JOHN HOLLAND PTY LTD ABN 11 004 282 268
Thirteenth Applicant

AND:

BRAEDEN CALABRO AND OTHERS LISTED IN THE RESPONDENTS' SCHEDULE A AS AMENDED
Respondents

AND: THE AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSIONER
Intervener

JUDGE:

MCKERRACHER J

DATE:

27 JULY 2010

PLACE:

PERTH

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

INTRODUCTION

  1. There are in excess of 1500 respondents to this proceeding.  It is now contended for several hundred of the respondents that have entered conditional appearances through their solicitors (the conditional respondents) that they were not personally served with the originating process some months ago.  A declaration to that effect is sought.

    BACKGROUND

  2. This proceeding commenced with an urgent application for interim injunctive relief earlier this year as a result of the alleged unlawful industrial action by all of the respondents in December 2009 and January 2010.  The conduct was allegedly ongoing at the commencement of the proceeding. 

  3. Leave for the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner to intervene was granted.  The Commissioner has generally supported the positions taken by the applicants who employ the respondents.  For example, the Commissioner supported the application pursued by the applicants ex parte.  The action was said to be in contravention of the Woodside Pluto LNG Project 2009 No 2 order of Fair Work Australia dated 23 January 2010, the Building and Construction Ministry Improvement Act 2005 (Cth) (BCII Act) and the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).

  4. Judgment in the first urgent matter was given in United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (2010) 220 IR 153 (United Group No 1).  The reasons for granting urgent injunctive relief are set out therein. 

  5. A short time after granting the original orders, I made further orders extending the injunctive relief in United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (No 2) (2010) 192 IR 160 (United Group No 2).   In United Group No 2, I noted (at [4]-[5]):

    4        There are, as indicated in United Group No 1, in excess of 1500 respondents.  No affidavits have been filed by any of the respondents.  One of the main concerns in relation to granting an interlocutory injunction until trial was that none of the respondents has been given express notice of the intention to apply for such an interlocutory injunction today.  In normal circumstances, but for the considerations which appear elsewhere in these reasons, on that basis alone I would have been disinclined to grant further relief, let alone an interlocutory injunction until trial.  However, given the history disclosed on the evidence, I was persuaded that limited further orders should be made. 

    5        As reflected in United Group No 1, I am satisfied on the evidence that there is an arguable case that the respondents have engaged in ‘unlawful industrial action’ (as defined there and below) at the Pluto LNG Project at the Burrup Peninsula (the Project) in contravention of the Woodside Pluto LNG Project 2009 No. 2 order of Fair Work Australia dated 23 January 2010 and in breach of the Building and Construction Industry Improvement Act 2005 (Cth) (BCII Act) and the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).

  6. I granted an extension of the relief initially ordered after examination of the following considerations (at [24]-[29]);

    24       The balance of convenience strongly favours short term relief being extended.  On the basis of the evidence at present, the effect on the applicants and the owners of the Project, Woodside Burrup Pty Ltd (Woodside), of further industrial action is most significant with an estimated direct cost alone exceeding $500,000 a day.

    25       Additionally, there are potential consequences of industrial action such as damage to the reputation of the applicants and liquidated damages for delay.  Woodside, in turn, would, if the delay continued, face potential losses arising from loss of revenue due to production delay.  These considerations, extending as they do, to third parties, are nevertheless relevant:  Patrick Stevedores Operations Pty Ltd v Maritime Union of Australia (1998) 82 IR 87.

    26       The prospect of the respondents being able to meet an award in damages for such loss is unrealistic. 

    27       Moreover, the proper formulation of the test concerning the adequacy of damages is not whether they are an adequate remedy but whether it is ‘just in all the circumstances’ that the applicants should be ‘confined to a remedy in damages’:  CBI Construction Pty Ltd v Abbott per Gilmour J (at [70]). 

    28       Underlying this dispute is said to be the issue concerning ‘motelling’ discussed in United Group No 1.  There is evidence that some or all respondents who fly in, fly out to their work site, oppose a circumstance in which they are required to return to different temporary accommodation from that occupied on the previous work interval.  While it might be thought that some practical measure could be adopted to address concerns arising from this complaint, the prospect of ‘motelling’ for a short term appears to be the only possible adverse consequence of restraining the respondents from engaging in further unlawful industrial action.  On the other hand, they will at least, by returning to and remaining at work, be paid in accordance with Workplace Agreements. 

    29       For those reasons, as the balance of convenience strongly favours the orders being extended for a finite period, with liberty to apply being granted, I made orders for a brief period of time.  These will preserve the status quo. 

  7. I also made provision for substituted service of the orders made on that date.  That provision was made for these reasons (at [30]):

    For service under 0 7 of the Federal Courts Rules, the respondents’ proper addresses are their home addresses rather than their addresses at the work site.  However they travel from their home addresses to the work site which they occupy while employed at the site.  The injunction primarily concerns their conduct at the work site.  Wide publicity has surrounded this dispute including the making or (sic-of) these and previous orders.  The Unions of which the respondents are members are and will be well aware of these and the previous orders in United Group No 1.  In accordance with the power in O 7 r 9 of the Federal Court Rules I have made provision for substituted service of the orders that are made below, as the circumstances of the case require prompt service and personal service is impractical. 

  8. On 18 February 2010, in United Group Resources Pty Ltd ABN 17 114 888 201 v Calabro (No 3) (2010) 192 IR 170 (United Group No 3), I extended the interim injunction until trial or further order of the Court. 

  9. There have been several directions hearings since that time.  Three groups of respondents have been represented at those hearings pursuant to conditional appearances or appearances.  The three groups of conditional respondents are members of three different unions.  No motion in similar terms has been made by any other respondents but some individuals have submitted that they should not have been joined at the outset.  Proceedings against some of those respondents have been discontinued. 

    THESE MOTIONS

  10. By three notices of motion, the conditional respondents seek a declaration under O 9 r 7(1)(c) of the Federal Court Rules (the rules) that the originating process in this action has not been duly served on those respondents.  The motions are supported by affidavits.

  11. Following a preliminary directions hearing prior to the hearing of the motion, a request was made of the applicants’ solicitors for information confirming the method of service of the originating process on each individual respondent but no response specific to particular individual respondents was received. 

    THE RELEVANT RULES

  12. Order 7 relevantly provides as follows:

    1        Originating process

    (1)Subject to the provisions of this Order, originating process shall be served personally on each respondent.

    (2)The copy for service shall be signed and sealed as mentioned in Order 4, rule 7.

    (3)If a respondent to an originating process:

    (a)enters an appearance; or

    (b)files a defence; or

    (c)appears before the Court in response to the process;

    the originating process is taken to have been served on the respondent personally when the earliest of those events occurred, unless personal service on an earlier day is established.

    2        Personal service: how effected

    (1)Personal service of a document is effected on:

    (a)an individual — by leaving a copy of the document with him;

    (2)If a person refuses to accept service of a document, personal service may be effected on him by putting the document down in his presence and telling him the nature of it.

    (3)It shall not be necessary in order to effect personal service that the original document be shown.

    3        Mode of service

    A document which is not an originating process and which is required or permitted to be served in any proceeding may be served personally, but unless personal service is expressly required, it need not be served personally.

    4        Ordinary service: how effected

    (1)Where personal service of a document is not required, the document may be served:

    (a)by leaving a copy of the document at the proper address of the person to be served between the hours of nine in the morning and five in the afternoon on any day on which the Registry in that State or Territory is open; or

    (b)by sending a copy of the document by pre paid post addressed to the person to be served at his or her proper address; or

    (c)where any enactment of the Commonwealth or of the State or Territory in which service is to be effected provides for service of a document on a corporation or organisation by serving the document in accordance with such provision; or

    (d)if a person to be served has filed a notice for service at an exchange box of a solicitor under paragraph 7 (1) (a) of this Order — by leaving a copy of the document, addressed to that solicitor, in that exchange box; or

    (e)if a person to be served has filed a notice for service by facsimile transmission under paragraph 7 (1) (b) of this Order — by sending the document to the facsimile number specified in the notice; or

    (f)if a person to be served has filed a notice for service by electronic communication under paragraph 7 (1) (c) of this Order — by sending the document to the email address specified in the notice.

    (2)For the purposes of subrule (1), the proper address of a person shall be the address for service of that person in the proceeding but if, at the time when the copy is left or posted pursuant to subrule (1), the person has no address for service in the proceeding, the person’s usual or last known place of business or of abode shall be the person’s proper address.

    (3)The time of service of any document for the purpose of any proceeding shall, where the copy of the document:

    (a)is sent by pre paid post in accordance with paragraph (1) (b) — be seven days after the copy is so sent; or

    (b)is left in an exchange box in accordance with paragraph (1) (d) — be two days after the copy is so left; or

    (c)is sent by facsimile transmission in accordance with paragraph (1) (e) — be one day after the copy is transmitted excluding Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays; or

    (d)is sent by electronic communication in accordance with paragraph (1) (f) — be one day after the copy is sent.

    (4)For paragraphs (3) (b), (c) and (d), mention of a day or days does not include a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday.

    …(emphasis added)

  13. Rule 1 provides, in effect, for personal service of originating process and ordinary service of other documents.  The requirement for personal service of originating process is a requirement which is said to be strictly construed:  Ainsworth v Redd (1990) 19 NSWLR 78 at 83. For the respondents it is argued that service of the originating process is a jurisdictional fact: see Laurie v Carroll (1957) 98 CLR 310 at 324 and Ainsworth at 84.

  14. The onus is on the applicants to prove that the originating process has been served on the respondents in a manner which conforms with the service requirements of the rules. 

    CONSIDERATION

  15. There is certainly evidence that some of the conditional respondents were not personally served with the originating process. 

  16. There is also evidence that in a small number of cases, some conditional respondents were not served in any sense with the process in that they did not at any time receive a copy of it.

  17. On the other hand, there is no evidence that any moving respondent was either unaware of the proceeding or unaware that he or she was a respondent to the proceeding.  Given the substantial publicity surrounding the commencement of the proceeding and the letters referred to below (at 25) this may not be surprising.  This is a significant issue in light of the approach taken by the courts as to what will be personal service.

  18. For the conditional respondents, it is argued that the applicants chose to join some 1500 respondents and must be taken to have been aware from the inception of the proceeding that the originating process was required to be served personally on each of them.  It had been open to the applicants, on the first return date, at the hearing of the urgent application for the applicants to seek an order for substituted service.  Although the applicants sought and obtained an order for substituted service in relation to the further or extended order made by the Court on 5 February 2010, that order was not stated to apply to either the order made on 28 January 2010 or to the originating process. 

  19. The respondents also contend that there is no adequate explanation for failure to personally serve considering that it was open to the applicants to serve the conditional respondents personally at work.  However this argument overlooks the fact that the conditional respondents were allegedly not attending work which was the very reason for the commencement of the proceeding and for the alternative measures taken to attempt to effect service.

  20. For the respondents, it is argued that the applicants have failed to adduce any evidence regarding:

    (a)       the steps that they have taken to serve each of the respondents ‘personally’; or

    (b)why it is or was ‘impractical’ to serve the respondents personally with the application – see O 7 r 9(1) and Porter v Freudenberg (1915) 1 KB 857 at 888-889.

  1. At a technical level while there is some force in these submissions, I do not accept that they are entirely correct.   The applicants have relied on affidavits of Mr Jack Peter Lee, Mr Rodney Charles Burnby and Mr Adie Rama Kadir which all relate to the steps taken to achieve service. 

  2. Mr Kadir is engaged with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA (CCIWA) and is an Employee Relations Advisor.  He says that after the originating application and orders were made, he assisted in relation to the instruction of the Karratha bailiff and the Dampier bailiff regarding serving the originating process and the order on each of the respondents. 

  3. Mr Kadir asked each of the applicants to send a letter to the home addresses of each of the respondents whom they employed advising them of the originating application and the orders made by this Court.  Each of the applicants posted the letter to their respective employees at their home address.  He received and annexed to his affidavit written confirmation that the applicants had posted a copy of the letter to each respondent they employed.  None of the employees responded to the correspondence seeking a further copy of the originating application or orders. 

  4. That original letter which was sent to each employee says:

    We write to advise that on 27 January 2010, the Federal Court of Australia granted an interlocutory injunction restraining certain employees (including you) from continuing to take unprotected and unlawful industrial action on the Pluto LNG Project.

    The interlocutory injunction will remain in force until 5.00 pm on 5 February 2010.

    On or about Thursday, 28 January 2010, personal service of the following documents was effected on you in your accommodation on site:

    ·Federal Court Application for Interlocutory Injunction; and

    ·Federal Court Order of Justice McKerracher granting the Interlocutory Injunction (Order).

    If you have not received copies of these documents, please contact [insert person] as soon as possible.

    Please be aware that if you:

    ·refuse or neglect to do any act within the time specified in the Order for the doing of the act; or

    ·disobey the Order by doing an act which the order requires you to abstain from doing,

    you will be liable to imprisonment, sequestration of property or other punishment.

    Any other person who knows of the Order and does anything which helps or permits you to breach the terms of the Order will be similarly punished. 

    Yours faithfully

  5. Mr Lee and Mr Burnby in their affidavits, swore that they served personally as many of the respondents as they were able to find at home and for those they could not find at home, they left the originating process at the address of each of the respondents in a variety of ways. 

  6. The position as to whether the respondents actually received the originating process is not clear but it must be said that at the commencement of this proceeding a great deal of publicity occurred as disclosed on affidavit evidence.  That publicity taken together with the personal letters would explain why there is no evidence that any respondent, especially any conditional respondent, did not become aware that he or she was a party to the proceeding in the manner described in the letter forwarded by the applicants to all respondents at or about the date of the various letters.

  7. Without the letter, it must be said that simply knowing of the proceeding does not mean that one knows that one is a party to the proceeding, let alone the precise cause of action being pursued.  But the letter does at least deal with the important issue of knowledge of those matters.

  8. Importantly given that the conditional respondents each instructed the solicitors concerned to enter conditional appearances, it must be inferred that the originating process came to their notice.   

  9. In Howship Holdings Pty Ltd v Leslie [No 2] (1996) 41 NSWLR 542 (at 544) Young J said observed:

    … personal service merely means that the document in question must come to the notice of the person for whom it is intended. The means by which that person obtains the document are usually immaterial. This is clear in cases that have been considered good law over the centuries, including Hope v Hope (1854) 4 De GM & G 328 at 341-345; 43 ER 534 at 539-540; R v Heron; Ex parte Mulder (1884) 10 VLR 314 at 315; Pino v Prosser [1967] VR 835 at 838. Some of those cases were complicated by the requirement in the former statutes that a person serving initiating process had to
    endorse the initiating process, but the principle is clear from them. 

    If this were not so, one would get the absurd situation referred to by McInerney J in Pino v Prosser (at 837), that the conclusion would be one which is:

    "... remarkable to the point of seeming absurdity, in that the defendant who, on his own affidavit admits that he received the writ ... should be held not to have been served."

  10. Recently in Metacorp Pty Ltd v Andeco Construction Group Pty Ltd [2010] VSC 199 Vickery J said (footnotes omitted):

    84       As was pointed out by the Lord Chancellor in Hope v Hope:

    The object of all service is of course only to give notice to the party to whom it is made, so that he may be made aware of and may be able to resist that which is sought against him; and when that has been substantially done, so that the court may feel perfectly confident that service has reached him, everything has been done as required.

    85       To like effect were the observations of Holroyd J in Rudd v John Griffiths Cycle Co Ltd where his Honour, in the course of delivering a dissenting judgment of the Full Court, after referring to the common law history of personal service, went on to say:

    Before the Common Law Procedure Act 1852, 15 and 16 Vict., c. 76, came into operation the Courts of England were in general very strict in their interpretation of what constituted personal service, but still on several occasions they declined to set aside the service where the copy of the writ had been delivered at the party’s residence to a servant or relative of his and from the facts the Judge thought it fair to infer that it came into his hands or to his knowledge so that he did or could, if he pleased, become acquainted with its contents.

    86       These passages were cited with approval by McInerney J inPino v Prosser who observed that it would be:

    ... remarkable to the point of seeming absurdity, in that the defendant who, on his own affidavit admits that he received the writ ... should be held not to have been served.

    87       The general principle enunciated in Hope v Hope and Rudd v John Griffiths Cycle Co Ltd, was applied by McInerney J inPino v Prosser to the following circumstances: the relevant document, a copy writ, although left with the defendant’s wife, who was a person not capable of accepting personal service on behalf of her husband, came into the possession of the defendant on the same day when, later that night after returning from work, the defendant was handed the copy of the writ by his wife. Receipt by this means was held by the Court to be sufficient to constitute good personal service.

  11. As indicated at the outset, there is no doubt that conventional personal service has not been achieved for all of the conditional respondents. Moreover the applicants appear not to be able to say which respondent was ‘served’ in which manner, if at all. 

  12. Nevertheless it must be inferred that all of the conditional respondents are well aware that he or she is a party to the proceeding having instructed solicitors and counsel.  This is far from a situation of ‘the bailiff’ appearing on the door step for the first time to effect execution of a judgment or order.  To the extent it is relevant, which may be minimal, the proceedings are not far advanced at all.  No defences have been filed for example. 

  13. Although it is possible that there may be some respondents who were unaware of the very substantial publicity surrounding the commencement of this litigation and the real possibility that as an employee, he or she was a party to it, there is no evidence that any of the conditional respondents were in that position. 

  14. The point that no substituted service order was sought at the outset is both correct and reasonable. However given the urgency of the situation in this unusual litigation, especially the very substantial sums at risk on a daily basis, it is understandable with hindsight that not every difficulty could be foreseen.  There were concentrated service attempts which were reasonable in the circumstances.  The personal letter to all employees of the applicants was another means of bringing the proceedings to their attention.  When the difficulties became known, an application for substituted service was pursued.

  15. For others not represented, the problem has not yet arisen but could reasonably be cured with an order under r 10 if that were appropriate which does not fall for consideration at present. 

  16. In my view the declarations sought should not be made as it is clear that all of the conditional respondents have the necessary notice of the originating process.  Although they have not all been personally served in the conventional sense under the rules, the cases show that the purpose of the rules as to service has been achieved.

    CORRECTIONAL ORDERS

  17. As I am not convinced that any declaration should be made, it is strictly unnecessary to deal with the correctional order issue, however as I raised the topic at least in part, myself, I would say that if I am wrong on the service point, I would grant relief in the circumstances.

  18. The applicants argue that although personal service was not effected in each case, in the alternative, that it is clear from the affidavits of Mr Lee, the Bailiff of the Karratha Police Station and Mr Burnby, the Bailiff of the Dampier Police Station that it was impractical to effect personal service of the originating application on at least some of the respondents but that steps were taken to bring the documents to their notice. 

  19. In those circumstances it is said that the jurisdiction of the Court under O 7 r 10 of the rules is enlivened and the Court should order that the originating application was served on each of the conditional respondents.

  20. The respondents contend that at this stage of the proceedings it is not appropriate for the Court ex post facto to correct defects in the service of the originating process on the respondents by making an order as the applicants seek pursuant to O 7 r 10 FCR as:

    (a)there is no motion before the Court from the applicants seeking relief under O 7 r 10; and

    (b)the evidence before the Court is not sufficient to show:

    (i)        why service of the originating process on the respondents was ‘impractical’; or

    (ii)what steps were taken by the applicants to effect service of the originating process on the respondents such that the Court could be satisfied that each respondent had sufficient knowledge of the contents of the originating process to be in a position to respond to it.

  21. In the course of the hearing, I raised with counsel for the respondents the question of whether relief should be granted under O 1 r 8 of the rules which provides as follows:

    8        Relief from rules

    The Court may dispense with compliance with any of the requirements of the Rules, either before or after the occasion for compliance arises.

  22. Emmett J in Sogelease Australia Ltd v Griffin (2003) 128 FCR 399 indicated that such relief in his view would be appropriate.

  23. In the circumstances of these motions, the conditional respondents contend that excusing the non-service pursuant to O 1 r 8 FCR would not be appropriate.  In support of that submission they reiterate the argument that service of the originating process is a jurisdictional fact, a requirement which needs to be met before the Court can exercise the jurisdiction with respect to the respondents. 

  24. As to dispensing with the requirement in the Rules (and see also Lazar v Taito (Aust) Pty Ltd (1985) 5 FCR 395), it was submitted that the circumstances in which the Court will exercise the discretion to dispense with the requirement for personal service will be limited, to use the expression of McGregor J in Lazar (at 403 and at 414 per Neaves J). In that case, a Full Court of this Court upheld the decision of a judge at first instance to dispense with personal service of the court process in the circumstances of the case. That was, however, on the basis that the court was satisfied that the particular respondent had notice of the proceedings. Neaves J (with whom relevantly Fox J and McGregor JJ agreed) said in relation to O 1 r 8 FCR (at 414):

    In my opinion O 1, r 8 confers a very wide discretion on the court to dispense with personal service where the court considers it appropriate to do so. The power which it confers is not limited by the express requirement for personal service in O 40, r 8 though it may be accepted that in the case of contempt proceedings as, perhaps, in other cases there will be limited circumstances in which the discretion conferred by the rule should be exercised. I am satisfied that the particular circumstances of this case were such that an exercise of the discretion to dispense with personal service was justified. The appellant's submissions on this aspect of the matter are rejected.

  25. In my respectful view those observations are not only binding but make good sense.  The ‘very wide discretion’ is one which in an appropriate case may be exercised ex post facto if the interests of justice so require.  No motion for contempt is before the court which may raise different considerations.  The fact that the court may in effect regularize the initial service so that the proceedings of which the conditional respondents must be taken to have notice may move forward does not mean that on a hypothetical contempt motion against any respondent, that service or knowledge of a restraining order would be as readily inferred.  That, however is entirely hypothetical at present.

  26. Orders under either O 7 or O 1 are not necessary, but were they necessary, in my view they could be properly made in the circumstances of this case.

    INFERENCE AS TO KNOWLEDGE

  27. The conditional respondents contend that it is not open to the Court to draw any inference as to their knowledge of the proceeding.  They contend that the conditional appearance was a necessary procedural step filed to enable the respondents to bring the significant defects in the service of the originating process in the proceeding to the attention of the Court (Robinson v Kuwait Liaison Office (1997) 145 ALR 68 at 75).

  28. Two things may be said about Robinson v Kuwait.  First, as the extract below reveals, it involved specialised legislation specific to that case.  Secondly, to the extent that it made the point that filing a conditional appearance does not constitute a submission to jurisdiction, it is undoubtedly correct.  But as will be seen, that is not the argument raised for the applicants in this motion.  In Robinson v Kuwait Moore J said:

    The question that arises in these proceedings is whether the Kuwait Liaison Office has entered an appearance of the type that enlivens the provisions of s 26. A person may appear in a court by announcing an appearance or, if the Rules of the Court so provide, by filing a notice of appearance. The appearance may be unconditional in which case it generally amounts to a submission to the jurisdiction of the court and a waiver of any irregularity such as one concerning the manner of service: see Caltex Oil (Australia) Pty Ltd v The Dredge “Willemstad” (1976) 136 CLR 529 at 539, 11 ALR 227 per Gibbs J. A conditional appearance constitutes an appearance for the purposes of the litigation, subject to a right to apply to set aside the originating process: see Trade Practices Commission v The Gillette (No. 1) (1993) 45 FCR 366 at 369-70, 118 ALR 280; Westpac Banking Corporation v P&O Containers Ltd (1991) 105 ALR 90 at 93-4; for reasons relating to service or other reasons: see Cell Tech Communications Pty Ltd v Nokia Mobile Phones (UK) Ltd (1995) 58 FCR 365 at 370; 136 ALR 733.

    If the court does not have rules regulating the manner of appearing, then issues will arise about the consequences of a party appearing before articulating an objection to jurisdiction. In Lindgran v Lindgran [1956] VLR 215, Smith J concluded that a party had not waived an objection to jurisdiction arising from defective service of the originating process by consenting to an adjournment and, on a later occasion, by appearing through counsel who announced an appearance before raising an objection to jurisdiction. His Honour said at 220 that to waive objection to jurisdiction:

    [T]here must at least be words or conduct of such a nature that an inference can properly be drawn therefrom that the party alleged to have waived the objection does not intend to rely upon it: cf Ray v the Justices of Melbourne (1891) 17 VLR 186; Brokenshire v Bacon (1895) 1 VLR 273; Re the Melbourne Democratic Club (1901) 27 VLR 88; Craine v Colonial Mutual Fire Insurance Ltd (1920) 28 CLR 305 at 326; see also Hampden v Wallis (1884) 26 Ch D 746; Rein v Stein (1892) 66 LT 469, per Cave J at 471-2.

    The prosecution of an application to set aside orders on grounds that the Court did not have jurisdiction to make them because there had been ineffective service of the originating process, while raising grounds touching the merits, does not constitute a waiver of the right to object to jurisdiction: see Laurie v Carroll (1958) 98 CLR 310 at 335-36; see also National Commercial Bank v Wimborne (1979) 11 NSWLR 156 at 176-183. A recent example of the application of these principles is found in Williams v The Society of Lloyds [1994] 1 VR 274 in which McDonald J concluded that a request for particulars of a claim did not constitute a waiver of the right to object to jurisdiction.

    Another recent example is found in Bannerton Holdings Pty Ltd v Sydbank Soenderjylland AS (unreported, 9 February 1996, Federal Court of Australia, Nicholson J). The respondent sought orders setting aside an application and service of originating process on it in Denmark and related orders under O 9, r 7. The respondent also sought a stay of the proceedings on the basis that the Federal Court was an inappropriate forum for the litigation of the claim. To the extent that the respondent was challenging the jurisdiction of the Federal Court, the applicant argued that the respondent had accepted the court’s jurisdiction by seeking an order staying the proceedings. Nicholson J discussed the relevant principles in the following passages:

    The case for the applicant also relies upon Rein v Stein (1892) 66 LT 469 at 471 where it was said by Cave J (with Williams J agreeing) that in order to establish a waiver of a right to object to jurisdiction it must be shown that the party alleged to have waived the objection has taken some step which is only necessary or only useful if the objection has been actually waived or if the objection has never been entertained at all. This statement was followed in Williams v The Society of Lloyds [1994] 1 VR 274 at 293 and National Commercial Bank v Wimborne (1979) 11 NSWLR 156.

    The dicta in Rein was applied in Williams & Glyn’s Bank Plc v Astro Dinamico Compania Naviera SA [1984] 1 WLR 438 at 444. It is Williams, supra, upon which the case for the respondent relies. It was there held that a summons in an English action to enforce guarantees given by two Greek companies in which they had joined a stay application together with an application to set aside the proceedings for lack of jurisdiction did not have the consequence that they had waived their objection to jurisdiction and was in no way inconsistent with maintaining that objection ...

    ... Williams & Glyn’s Bank, supra, is the relevant authority. It is a decision of the House of Lords and so is to be preferred as higher authority in any event if the ratio decidendi of Henry, supra, is properly to be understood as dealing with the same essential point. The reasoning in Williams & Glyn’s Bank (see particularly the speech of Lord Fraser of Tullybelton at 443-4) accords with what was said by Caves J in Rein v Stein, supra, and by Denning LJ in Re Dulles’ Settlement, supra. It also accords with the common sense notion that an appearance made under protest as to jurisdiction is inconsistent with the concept of voluntary submission or waiver of the right to object: cf Finnish Marine Insurance Co Ltd v Protective National Insurance Co [1990] 1 QB 1078. The law is so understood in Dicey and Morris on The Conflict of Laws 12th ed, 1993, vol 1 pp 311-12. Nothing said by the High Court in Laurie v Carroll (1958) 98 CLR 310 supports a contrary conclusion.

    Consequently, the applicant’s argument that the respondent has voluntarily submitted to the jurisdiction cannot succeed. That resolution of law is consistent with the basis upon which the respondent appeared, namely by way of continuing objection to jurisdiction even when contending for the stay application.

    In my opinion, the reference in s 26 to a foreign State “enter(ing) an appearance in a proceeding” is a reference to circumstances where the foreign State conducts itself in a way that indicates it does not challenge the jurisdiction of the court based on ineffective service. So much is apparent from the words that follow, namely “without making an objection in relation to the service of the initiating process”. Submission to jurisdiction more generally is dealt with by s 10 of the Immunities Act. Such an indication may be manifest by the unqualified announcement of an appearance on the foreign State’s behalf at a hearing or the filing of an unconditional notice of appearance. It would not be manifest by the filing of a conditional appearance at least of the type contemplated by rules such as O 9 r 6 of the Federal Court of Australia Rules of the Rules of this Court. The filing of such a conditional appearance would preserve the right of the foreign State to seek a declaration under O 9 r 7(1)(a) that, having regard to s 25 of the Immunities Act, the originating process had not been duly served.

    In the present case, the filing of the “employer’s appearance” on behalf of the Kuwait Liaison Office with the Australian Industrial Registry did not, in my opinion, constitute the entering of an appearance for the purposes of s 26. First, the written direction to file it made clear that it would not deny the filing party the right to make submissions about jurisdiction which, in my opinion, would include want of jurisdiction arising from defective service of process to which ss 23, 24 and 25 of the Immunities Act applies. It was in that context that the appearance was filed. Secondly, the solicitors acting for the Kuwait Liaison office made plain, albeit several weeks later, that their client was not submitting to the Commission’s or the court’s jurisdiction. Taken together, it is evidence, in my opinion, that the Kuwait Liaison Office was not manifesting an intention of the type upon which s 26 intended to operate, that is submitting to jurisdiction notwithstanding any defect in the service of originating process. …

  1. The key analysis in Robinson v Kuwait was as to the question of whether the pursuit of an application to set aside orders on grounds that the Court did not have jurisdiction to make them because there had been ineffective service of the originating process, meant there had been a submission to jurisdiction.  It was held, consistently with Laurie v Carroll at 335-336; see also National Commercial Bank v Wimborne (1979) 11 NSWLR 156 at 176-183 that it did not constitute a waiver of the right to object to jurisdiction.

  2. Nothing done by the conditional respondents has constituted a waiver of  their right to contend that there has been no valid service of the originating process so as to enliven the jurisdiction of the Court.  Nor has it constituted a submission to jurisdiction. 

  3. Consistently with the authorities discussed at [30]-[31], the only argument advanced for the applicants is that if the purpose of the rules as to service is to ensure that notice of the proceedings is given to a respondent, then in instances where it is clear that the giving of notice (even before an unconditional appearance is filed) has been achieved, then as the purpose of service is attained, it is inappropriate to make a declaration that personal service has not been effected.   This argument succeeded.  It is not the argument in Robinson (which failed), that there had been a submission to jurisdiction precluding any argument as to service being raised.

    CONCLUSION

  4. For the forgoing reasons I decline to make the declarations sought and the motions seeking the declarations will be dismissed.   I will hear counsel as to any consequential orders and the making of further directions.

I certify that the preceding fifty-two (52) numbered paragraphs are a true copy of the Reasons for Judgment herein of the Honourable Justice McKerracher.

Associate: 

Dated:       27 July 2010


SCHEDULE A AS AMENDED

Decmil Australia Pty Ltd
1        CALABRO Braeden 
2        PEARCE Symeon   
3        LEE Samuel      
4        JOHANSSON Michael
5        CONNOR John        
6        ROBERTS Mitch      
7        Mccarty Grant       
8        GRIGARIUS Travis
9        WEBB John   
10     KENDALL Simon
11     SCAHILL Adam
12     WATKINS Lee
13     GILMOUR Sam
14     HALES Rory
15     BRENTON Michael
16     HENAWAY Caleb
17     CARMAN Steve
18     HOSKING Peter
19     DAY Paul
20     PEEK Carl
21     KOHLER Bradley
22     SMITH Shannon
23     CLEMENTS Andrew
AGC Industries Pty Ltd
24     AINSWORTH Michael
25     ALWAYS Peter
26     ARKEVELD Dirk
27     BAKBAK Bekir
28     BARCHAM Stephen
29     BARKER Georffrey
30     BARTON Richard
31     BARWISE Richard
32     BEILKEN Grant
33     BERMINGHAM Simon
34     BENKIRANE Abdellilah
35     BIGLIN Scott
36     BLACKBOURNE Eden
37     BLOOR Graeme
38     BODY Ross
39     BOGOEVSKI Tom
40     BOWERS Gerard
41     BRIAGAS Genaro
42     BRITCHER Colin
43     BROWN John
44     BROWN Mark
45     BROWN Matthew
46     BROWN Thomas
47     BROWNE Keith
48     BRUCE Robert
49     BUNNER Colin
50     BUNYAN Paul
51     BURGER David
52     BURGESS Derek
53     BURNS James
54     BYERS Shannon
55     CALLAGHAN Stephen
56     CAMPBELL Bevan
57     CAMPION John
58     CARANDANG Adrian
59     CARDOSO Joaquim
60     CARR William
61     CASAS Ramon
62     CASSIDY Chris
63     CATTLE Leslie
64     CHARDON Anthony
65     CHO Han Jeong
66     CHO Myoung Ho
67     CLAY Luke
68     CLAYBURN Richard
69     CLIFTON Dane
70     COLEMAN Allen
71     COLEY Keith
72     COMIA Irineo
73     COOK Geoffrey
74     COSMOS Maria
75     CREAM Kevin
76     CREASEY Grant
77     DANIELL Jared
78     DAVIS Faisal
79     DELLAGOSTINO Ray
80     DOLAR Angel
81     DOWDLE Greg
82     DOWNES Joshua
83     DUDA Brendon
84     ELLIOT Trevor
85     ELLIS Brendon
86     ELLIS Gavin
87     FABER Andrew
88     FINLAYSON Dean
89     FOLEY David
90     FRANCIS Steven
91     FRASER David
92     GARVIE Sean
93     GAZEY Liam
94     GEOGHEGAN Aaron
95     GIBBONS Jean
96     GIBBS Wayne
97     GODDEN Toby
98     GREENLAND Rewi
99     GREHAN Paul
100    HALLAM Neil
101    HANN Troy
102    HANSFORD Gordon
103    HARDINGHAM Victor
104    HARRIS Aiden
105    HARRIS Jack
106    HARRIS Paul
107    HEBBARD Quinton
108    HILL Rodney
109    HILLIER Dion
110    HOPA Boyd
111    HOWELL Dylan
112    HOY Dion
113    HUBBERT Zeke
114    JACK John
115    JAENSCH Corey
116    JAHN Brad
117    JEFFERIES Brad
118    JENKINS Mark
119    JONES Steven
120    JOSEPHS Anthony
121    JOVANOVIC George
122    KAMPMAN Michael
123    KERMODE William
124    KHOO Meow-Ling
125    KIM Hyong Joo
126    KIM Jae Uk
127    KIM Keumyul
128    KIM Tae Shir
129    KNOWLER Steven
130    KOLAR Slavko
131    KYUNG Kyuyel
132    LEDGER Todd
133    LEE Anthony
134    LEE Chongil
135    LEE Hyungkil
136    LEE Kyuyil
137    LOVE Ray
138    LUCKMAN Graham
139    LYNCH Brian
140    MACFARLAN Chris
141    MACKENZIE Alex
142    MAIN Craig
143    MAMUDI Mudzait
144    MARQUES Augusto
145    MARSDEN Warren
146    MARSHALL Roy
147    MARTIN Kean
148    MATIC Mirko
149    MATTHEWS Michael
150    MAXWELL Matthew
151    McBRIDE Neil
152    McCONNELL Terry
153    McDERMOTT Dermott
154    MCLEAN Graham
155    McMILLAN Ian
156    MITCHELL-NGAWAKA Bruno
157    MOON Lee
158    MOREIRA Manuel
159    MORTI Rosita
160    MULLIGAN Barrie
161    NA Myoung Ho
162    PAEHUA Charles
163    PAKU Albert
164    PALLIER Matthew
165    PALLIER Stephen
166    PAMVOUXOGOLOU Benjamin
167    PELOSI Steven
168    PEPPER Shane
169    PES James
170    PES Leslie
171    PIVA Bernard
172    POTTS Paul
173    POUYE Paul
174    PRATLEY Steven
175    PUKE Taare
176    QUINTO Arturo
177    RAMADANI Berat
178    RAO Keith
179    RAVEN Grant
180    RICHARDSON Andrew
181    RIGLEY Peter
182    ROBERTS Ricky
183    ROBINSON Brian
184    ROSALES Dennis
185    SABINE Tom
186    SARNADSKY Kenneth
187    SATUROS Perlito
188    SCHULTZ Drew
189    SEONG Ki Young
190    SEONG Lak
191    SEWELL John
192    SHAVE Anthony
193    SKIPINA Aleksandar
194    SKIPINA Vladmir
195    SMITH Jeff
196    SMITH Ryan
197    SOLOMON Trevor
198    SONG Dong Jin
199    SONG Kichul
200    SOUN Sareun
201    STIVALETTA Joey
202    STOJOSKI Zoran
203    SUYAT Bienvenido
204    SYGUWA Richard
205    TANNER Bradley
206    TAYLOR Raeminn
207    TENISELI Leo
208    THOMAS Gary
209    THOMPSON Tui
210    THOMSON Matthew
211    TURNER Paul
212    TURNER Anthony
213    VALENTINO Anthony
214    VAN TRAN Khanh
215    VENTURA Fabio
216    VOICAN Jacob
217    VOICAN Marian
218    WALKER Trevor
219    WALLACE Joe
220    WALSH Bruce
221    WARD Ches
222    WEBB Luke
223    WESTON Steve
224    WILLIAMS Neil
225    WILSON Peter
226    WOJTCZAK Natasha
227    YARRAN Ray
228    YATES Darrell
229    YEE Ah Meng (Sunny)
230    YOUNG Jamie
231    YOUNG Suk Park (Yong?)
232    ZABEL Ernest
Freo Group Limited
233    BRAND Gregory
234    BROWN Keith
235    CASEY Michael
236    CHAPPEL Harold
237    CLINCH Fred
238    COUTTS Andrew
239    DEVINE Robert
240    FARIU Terry
241    FULLERTON Paul
242    GANTER Jake
243    GATHERCOLE SMITH Carl
244    HENRY Anthony
245    HOPPER Catherine
246    JOHNS Steven
247    KEDDELL, Mason
248    LUBRIG Alfred
249    MATHISON Warwick
250    MILES Blake
251    MITCHELL Euan
252    MORGAN Sherman
253    NGATAMARIKI Tangi
254    NOYES Paul
255    PASSMORE Brett
256    PAYNE Graham
257    PUERTA David
258    SARDELIC Antony
259    SIMS Luke
260    SMITH Malcolm
261    STEVENSON, Carl
262    STEPHENSON, Keith
263    STUBING Bradley
264    UPOKO Tuaere
265    VAUGHAN Michelle
Modern Access Services
266    ANDERSON Joshua
267    AUGUST Anthony
268    BARBER Russell
269    BIDDISCOMBE John
270    BLYTHIN Kevin
271    BRINKLEY Kristian
272    BROOKSBY John
273    BURKHARDT Ron
274    CAPOLICCHIO Brett
275    CAVALLARO Domenico
276    COOPER Stephen
277    COOPER Tasman
278    CORNISH Mark
279    DALY Jarrod
280    DODD Adrian
281    EVANS Simon
282    FINN Beryl
283    FREEMAN Steven
284    GLENTWORTH Brooke
285    GODREI Pradeep
286    GOODSON Matthew
287    GREEN Kori
288    HARTLEY Mark
289    HAYES Karim
290   
291    HOOTON Nathan
292    HOWARD Ben
293    HUGILL Christopher
294    JURAS Frank
295    KINO Aaron
296    LEE Damien
297    MAM Nara
298    MAM Narak
299    MARSHALL Shane
300   
301    MCNAMARA David
302    MCNULTY Marin
303    MINIFIE Terry
304    MORRISON Jon
305    MURRAY Mike
306    NAMOK Mark
307    NUNES Andrew
308    OSBORN Christopher
309    PARKER Troy
310    PEACOCK Michael
311    PETERSON Trevor
312    PHILLIPS Richard
313    PHILLIPS-MITCHELL Gavin
314    PITT Stanley
315    RATIMA Khimbo
316    REUBEN Marvin
317    REVILL Brent
318    ROBERTS James
319    SANT Troy
320    SARSON Jason
321    SMITH Steve
322    SMITH Shayne
323    SUTER Julian
324    THOMPSON Brian
325    TITO David
326    VAN ROOYEN Kristy
327    WARAHI Damian
328    WELLS Brayden
329    WILLIAMS Adam
330    WILLING Mark
331    WRATHALL Shannon
332    YATES Scott
333    YU Lida
Mammoet Australia Pty Ltd
334    AINSWORTH Shaun
335    AUSTIN Grant
336    AXTON Shannen
337    BALL David
338    BATZLOFF Mark
339    BELLESINI Katie
340    BICKLER Adrian
341    BOLTON Lyall
342    CLIFFORD Tully
343    COHEN Andrew
344    COLEMAN Ronald
345    CRAVEN Matthew
346    DICKINSON Pauline
347    DIXON Shayne
348    DUNNE Maria
349    DRUMMOND Matthew
350    EDDINGTON Spencer
351    EMMOTT Rebecca
352    FITZGERALD Warren
353    FLETT Steve
354    FURLONG Katrina
355    GRAY Matthew
356    GRAY Richard
357    GREENWAY Darryl
358    HARDWICK James
359    HARRISON Brian
360    HINES Gregory
361    HOPKINS Gareth
362    HOW Adrian
363    LAMBERT Harold
364    LANDGREN Mick
365    LYE Warwick
366    McDONALD Ronald
367    McVINISH, Rosalee
368    MITCHELL Liam
369    NELSON Steven
370    OREILLY Richard
371    OTT Jonathan
372    REED Michael
373    RETTKE Robert
374    RICHARDSON Matthew
375    ROFF Andrew
376    ROGERS Malcolm
377    ROSS Adam
378    ROWE Greig
379    ROWE Raymond
380    SCHWARZ Peter
381    SEYMOUR Ashley
382    TAYLOR Nathan
383    TAYLOR John
384    THOMSON Gary
385    WALKER Ken
386    WAUGH Duncan
387    WELLS Brian
388    ZELINSKI Sonya
Monadelphous Engineering
Associates Pty Ltd
389    ABBOTT Ben
390    ALCIBAR Philip
391    ALEXANDER Raymond
392    ALI Paul
393    ALLSOP Simon
394    ANDERSON Steven
395    ANDERSON Stephen
396    ARMSTRONG Paul
397    ATKINS Daniel
398    ATKINSON Khan
399    BACHE Guy
400    BAKER Chris
401    Balazic Robert
402    BALLINGER Paul
403    BAMBERRY Russell
404    BARRON Dale
405    BARRY Peter
406    BATE Gordon
407    BELL Robert
408    BERRIDGE Helen
409    BOXALL Darren
410    BOZTEPE Serkan
411    BRODIE Peter
412    BRUEN Gerard (Ged)
413    BURCH Michelle
414    BURGETT James
415    BURTON Daniel
416   
417    BUTLER John
418    BUTTACAVOLI Anthony
419    CABRILOVSKI George
420    CALBALA Deborah
421    CALCOTT David
422    CALLANAN Barry
423    CANAL Jose
424    CARRIES Louis
425    CARRUTHERS John
426    CARTER Chad
427    CARY Eric
428    CERVINI Marc
429    CHAPMAN Scott
430    CLAPHAM Wade
431    CLARKE Tony
432    CLAY Adam
433    COLEMAN Matthew
434    COLLARD Kelvin
435    COLLINS Wayne
436    COLLINS David
437    COOK Ben
438    COULTER Jesse
439    CRAWFORD Robert (Dave)
440   
441    CROSS Sidney
442    CUMMING Kenneth
443   
444    CURTIS Robert
445    DACOMBE John
446    DASTOL Ronald
447    DAVIES Jason
448    DAVIS Greg
449    DAW Robert
450    DAW Stephen
451    DAWES Shane
452    DAY Matthew
453    DEMAIO Sam
454    DERRICK Robert
455    DEVINE Scott
456    DOWLING Graham
457    DOWSETT Keith
458    DRACA Bogoljub (Bob)
459    DUNCAN Anthony
460    DUNN Deborah
461    DWYER Regan
462    ECCLES Lee
463    ELDERIDGE Ben
464    ELLIOTT Francis
465    ELPEZ Marijan
466    EMMANUEL Harry
467    EMMERSON Russell
468    EMSLIE John
469    ERCEG James
470    EVANS Zach
471    FARRUGIA Dennis
472    FERGUSON Margaret
473    FERGUSON Michael
474    FIELD Michael
475    FITZROY Corey
476    FLAHAVIN Joseph
477    FLETCHER Ryan
478    FORBES Adrian
479    FORREST Robert
480    FOWLES Tony
481    FRADL Robert
482    GARTON Steven
483    GILLESPIE Don
484    GIVNEY Shane
485    GLASS Tyson
486    GLASS Victor
487    GLYNN Martin
488    GODFREY Andrew
489    GOLUB Aleksander
490    GOODALL Adrian
491    GRILLS Dean
492    GRIVINS Justin
493    HAINES Danny
494    HARRIS Robert
495    HARRIS Patricia
496    HAYES Clint
497    HEBBARD Leith
498    HEBDEN Garth
499    HIKU Frank
500    HODDY Graeme
501    HOLLOWAY Rodney
502    HOLT Robert
503    HOOYBERG Eric
504    HOPPE Dennis
505    HOWARD Morgan
506    HUGHES Murray
507    HULL Kevin
508    ISAIA Ben
509    JANNEKER Clinton
510    JARRETT Grant
511    JONES Peter
512    JONES Rodney
513    JONES Richard
514    JONES Raymond
515   
516    KAAKA Rima
517    KATSCHNER Lothar
518    KEEGAN Daniel
519    KEILY Shaun
520    KELLY Gavin
521    KELLY Shane
522    KELLY Mick
523    Kemp Michael
524    KING Joel
525    KING Mark
526    KORVER Glenn
527    KOUKA Boydie
528    KRAKOUER James
529    LAING Derek
530    LAMB Darren
531    LARSEN Leonard
532    LAWRENCE John
533    LAWRIE Lachlan
534    LEANING Jason
535    LEO Graham
536    LEONARD Troy
537    LEWIS Nerralie
538    LI Andrew
539    LIEBKE Steven
540    LIVINGSTON Anthony
541    LLOYD Martin
542    LORD Michael
543    LORTAN Gregory (Greg)
544    LOTZ Terrence
545    LOWE Darren
546    LUELING Freddi
547    LYONS Brock
548    MANN James
549    MATTHEWS Terry
550    MCCLUTCHIE Eugene
551    MCDONALD Malcolm
552    MCDONALD Cathy (Cate)
553    MCFARLANE Craig
554    MCGUIRE Alastair
555    MCLAREN Anne
556    MCLAREN Mark
557    MCMILLAN Brett
558    MELLOR Trevor
559    MILNE Andrew
560    MINNER Robert
561    MLEZIVA Sacha
562    MOONEY Matthew
563    MORRIS Patrick
564    MORTIMER Andrew
565    MURPHY Phillip
566    NAIDOO Manivasagan
567    NANKIVELL Mark
568    NELIS Joseph
569    NGAWHIKA Shane
570    NICHOLLS Andrew
571    NOCK Alan
572    NOVOSELL Erwin
573    O'MALLEY David
574    ORMEROD Jacqueline
575    OTTAWAY Kate
576    PAJONK Michael
577    PALEVNO Dennis
578    PATU Tuakaua
579    PATYI Richard
580    PAVLIK Robert
581    PAYNE Mark
582    PEDLER Robert
583    PETERSEN Malcolm
584    POOLE Michael
585    PRIDDETH Jake
586    PUATA Troy
587    PUATA Aaron
588    PURCEL Michael
589    QUALTROUGH Scott
590    QUINLESS Fred
591   
592    RANN Dylan
593    RAYMAN Carl
594    REGAN Les
595    REID Jethro
596    RIDDELL Jeffrey
597    RITCHIE Jason
598    RIVAS Anthony
599    ROBERTS  Douglas
600    ROBERTSON James (Jim)
601    ROSANES Renie
602    ROSS Yancy-lee
603    RUDOLF Renee
604    SANDERS Michael
605    SAXBY Zallman
606    SCALES Simon
607    SCANTLEBURY Robin
608    SCHAECHE Eric
609    SCHOONER Raimona (Joe)
610    SCULLION Joseph
611    SCULLION Neil
612    SEMMENS Jai
613    SHAND Derick
614    SHELLY Ben
615    SIMPSON Tahi
616    SLOMAN Janet
617    SMITH Barry
618    SMITH Peter
619    SMITH Bruce
620    SPARKE Cassie
621    SPRAGUE Matthew
622    STARCEVIC Martin
623    STRANG Matthew
624    SWINDLEHURST Kevin
625    TAHI TAHI Antonio
626    TAMATEA Patrick
627    TANGIORA Clinton
628    TANNER Buwyn
629    TASKER Patricia
630    TE MIHA Deon
631    THEXTON Gary
632    TICEHURST Michael
633    TIMMERMANS James
634    TOAKLEY Matthew
635    TOMS Robin
636    TYSON Shane
637    VAAI Lasalosi
638    VAN EETEN Daniel
639    VARIAN Shane
640    VELLA Jesse
641    VOZAREVIC Bruno
642    WATSON Rebecka
643    WEARNE Adam
644    WEBB Paul
645    WEIR Kristian
646    WETERE Louis
647    WHELPDALE Eddie
648    WHITE Ramon
649    WHITE Brett
650    WILKINSON Norman
651    WILLIAMS Keetha
652    WILLSHIRE Andrew (Andy)
653    WILSON Troy
654    WINTLE Steven
655    WOODLAND Jamie
656    WOOLLASTON Simon
657    WRIGHT Colin
658    YEONG Kam
RCR Positron Pty Ltd
659    ABELHA D.     E.
660    BISKUP M.     E.
661    DAVEY S.      E.
662    EGGERS S.     TA.
663    EVERITT J.       E.
664    GARDENER R. LE
665    GOUGE J.     LE.
666    GUYATT D.    LE.
667    HARRISON R.     E.
668    HEARD D.       E.
669    HEYWOOD S. LE.
670    HOLMES P.    E.
671    HOWARD T
672    JORDAN A.     TA.
673    KENNEDY W. BM
674    KIMPTON T.    E.
675    KIRKPATRICK K.TF
676    LEACH A.    TA.
677    LETTE B.        E.
678    MCCARTNEY N. TA
679    MEARDI A.     TA.
680    MESSAGE S.  TA
681    MITCHELL L.     E.
682    MULVEY P.      E.
683    PERAK A.     TA.
684    PHILLIPS D.     E.
685    PRIESTLY M.    TA.
686    SHEASBY R.  TA.
687    SMITH B.       E.
688    SPANGEN S.    E.
689    WATTS S.       E.
690    WEBB B.       E.
691    WILKS B.       E.
PCH Group Ltd
692    ASIATA Moses
693    ATKINS Te
694    BISHOP Matthew
695    BLAKE Sean
696    BRYAN Jason
697    BURNS Darryl
698    COLLINS Craig
699    COOMBES Michael
700    COOPER Layton
701    COOPER Aaron
702    DAVID Julian
703    DEVINE Cash
704    DIOSAN Radu
705    DROLLET Kayne
706    DUNN Nigel
707    EMERY Manny
708    FIAMANYA Dzifa
709    FINCARYK Oscar
710    FORBES Anthony
711    GABRIEL Iarere (Eddie)
712    GARNER Stephen
713    GATHERCOLE-SMITH Justin
714    GIBBS Jacob
715    GLASS Steven
716    HAPE Kahu
717    HARTLEY Dean
718    HAYES Craig
719    HINAKI Randal
720    HOWE Duane
721    IEREMIA Sipili
722    IND Matthew
723    JAYME Steven
724    JENSEN Ross
725    KAISER Michael
726    KEARNS Clinton
727    KELLY Stuart
728    KIRTLEY Jai
729    KLAPKO Andrew
730    KOMENE Robert
731    KOUKA Bennett
732    LANDMETER Harry
733    LODGE Dewayne
734    LULHAM Marc
735    MAEA John
736    MANU Harley
737    MANU Jeremia
738    MANU John
739    MANUEL Jardine
740    MASON Terence
741    MATENGA Huki
742    MCCRORY Bernard
743    McCRORY Jason
744    MEDLAND Dean
745    MILLS Stephen
746    MORRIS Joseph
747    MURPHY Wayne
748    NGAMOKI Pita
749    ORLOWSKI David
750    PAYNE Drew
751    PEMBERTON Paul
752    PIRIHI Jade
753    POTTER Leonard
754    RAHARUHI Kiha
755    RAINE Chris
756    REARDON Daniel
757    ROBINSON Michael
758    ROWSELL Jason
759    SHELFORD Angus
760    SMITH James
761    STONE Glenn
762    TEMAARI Ryan
763    TEPOHE Nathan
764    TEPU Patrick
765    THOMAS Jamie
766    THOMPSON Stacy
767    THURSTON Troy
768    TOGIA Sasa
769    TUPAEA Matthew
770    WALKER Stephen
771    WATENE Cory
772    WILLIAMSON Stephen
773    WIPERI Jason
774    DIEHL Armin
775    KELLY James
John Holland Pty Ltd - Savcor Finn (subcontractors)
776    BROWNING Paul
777    DAWSON Samual
778    HOWELL Justin
RCR Construction & Maintenance Pty Ltd
779    CAMPBELL Danny
780    DODSLEY Andrew
781    ELBOROUGH Kimley
782    FIELD Christopher
783    FRASER Laureen
784    FRASER Trevor
785    HAWKINS Stephen
786    LAMB Gregory
787    PARVIN Stephen
788    PLUNKETT Kevin
789    PORTER Mark
790    SEABURN Kevin
791    SOMERVILLE Ryan
792    SUTHERLAND Travis
793    TOKI Mitch
794    WALKER Wayne
795    WEBB Adrian
Downer EDI Engineering Power Pty Ltd
796    ANDERSON David
797    AYRES Brett
798    BEETS Bryan
799    BENJAMIN Edmund
800    BENSON Scott
801    BOSCO Adrian
802    BOWER Peter
803    BUSINOSKI Ilija
804    CAMPBELL Rhys
805    CARR Bryne
806    CHEAL John
807    CHRISTENSEN, Ross
808    COBB Brett
809    COOPER Dwanie
810    DOCKERTY Michael
811    DOHERTY Paul
812    ESDALE Adam
813    GIBBS Ian
814    GOODALL Darren
815    GORDON-DAVISON Kayne
816    GRECI David
817    HANNAFORD Gareth
818    HARRIS Guy
819    HARVEY Brian
820    HOWE Ben
821    KENNING Darrell
822    LEACH Gareth
823    MACALE David
824    MARCINKOWSKI Laurie
825    OLDHAM Scott
826    PEGRUM Brad
827    POON Ryan
828    PRIMROSE Darren
829    ROACH Greg
830    ROBERTS Jenny
831    ROBERTS Mick
832    SANDERS Jason
833    SELLECK Syd
834    SHEATHER Luke
835    SMITH Nathan
836    SODEN Derek
837    STEPHENSON Tony
838    STONER Andrew
839    SULLIVAN Scott
840    SWAN David
841    TAYLOR John
842    THOMAS Jamie
843    TURNER Robert
844    TWYFORD James
845    VAN ROOYEN Kelly
846    VAN WANROOY Justin
847    WALTERS Steve
848    WILSON Jeff
849    ABBOTT, Bill
850    BLIOKAS, Rob
851    CAKE, Mathew
852    CORBETT, Adam
853    KERR, Brian
854    KOVACESKI, Angel
855    MARAS, John
856    WELSH, Gary
857    WILSON, Michael
858    MARSH, Tony
CBI Constructors Pty Ltd
859   
860    ALLMAN Robert
861    ARCARO Murray
862    ARCARO Nicholas
863    ATKINSON Stephen
864    BACON Kenneth
865    BAEZ Juan
866    BAEZ Sergio
867    BAIL Jason
868    BAILEY Troy
869   
870   
871    BECKER Peter
872    BECKMAN Alan
873    BELL Murray
874   
875    BOBOS Carl
876    BRENNAN Stephen
877    BRITTAIN Timothy
878    BROOKS Raymond
879   
880   
881    CARMICHAEL James
882    CASTRO Dean
883    CHRISTENSEN Kenneth
884    CLARK Harley
885    CLARK Robert
886    CLEARY James
887    COELHO John
888    CONNELL Travis
889    CROSIER Andrew
890   
891    DODD Peter
892    DONDAS Michael
893    DONNELLY Brett
894    DUPLESSIS Johannes
895    EDWARDS David
896    ELPHICK Jeffrey
897    FAUSTINO Victor
898    FERREIRA Jose
899    FRONTE Salvatore
900   
901    GARNIER-BRADLEY Jason
902    GOGOLL Joel
903    GOODALL Tay
904    GROTH William
905    HAKIWAI Stirling
906    HARDINGHAM Adrian
907    HARRIS Ike
908    HEGARTY Steven
909    HOUSE Clayton
910    HUMPHREY David
911    HUNWICK Phillip
912    JARRETT Glenn
913    JOHNS Robert
914    JOHNSTON Anthony
915    KELLY Matthew
916    KINGHORN William
917    KOVACESKA Menka
918    KOVACESKI Donco
919   
920    KRUGER Rodney
921    LANE Darrin
922    LANNIN Bradley
923    LAROSA Agostino
924    LE CERF Garry
925    LEE Mu Yeun
926    LILLEY Joseph
927    LIM Nao
928    LUDLAM John
929    MABBOTT Bruce
930    MacKINNON Graeme
931    MANNERING Peter
932    MARLOW Michael
933    MARTIN James
934    MARTIN Trevor
935    MATEIU Gherge
936    MAXWELL Daniel
937    McCABE Mark
938    McINERNEY John
939    MCINERNEY Todd
940    MCKENNA Henry
941    MCKENZIE Alan
942    MCKINNON David
943    MILLER Bradley
944    MILROY Gary
945    MINNS Neil
946    MITCHELL Robert
947    MORLEY Robert
948    NEWSHAM Garry
949    NOBLE Brendan
950    O'SHEA Daniel
951    PAYNE Kenneth
952    PERRY Marcus
953    PESTANA Jose
954    PIRIHI Dylan
955    RAZI-PANAH Jarwad
956    RICE Mark
957    RYAN John
958    SANDERS Dean
959    SANSOM Gregory
960    SCHMITT Gregory
961    SCOTT Robert
962    SHIELD Keith
963    SMYTHE Jason
964    SNELLIN Ronald
965    STUURSTRAAT Shannan
966    SURRIDGE Daniel
967    SVILICICH Lee
968    SWINNEY Antony
969    TAMAPUA Allan
970    TAYLOR Kim
971    TUKUAFU Finau
972   
973    WAIARIKI Paul
974    WALSH John
975    WARNER Paul
976    WATTS Priscilla
977    WEAVER Blake
978    WEAVER Mark
979    WEIR Mitchell
980    WETERE Tirau
981    WOLSKI Daniel
982    WOOD Leon
983    WOODWARD Sam
United Group Resources Pty Ltd
984   
985    Lional Abrahams
986    Lesley Ajaran
987   
988    Nathan Arbery
989    Cody Arvidson
990    Mark Ashcroft
991    Adrian Baillie
992    Jonathan Barclay
993    Kenneth Barclay
994    Stephen Barnett
995    Rolando Bazaez
996    Louis Beaunoir
997    Jason Behncke
998    Jan Bennett
999    Troy Benton
1000  Arjun Bhoi
1001  Nitin Bhosale
1002  Marcel Biggar
1003  Francis Blampied
1004  Tommy Bonke
1005  Benjamin Boocock
1006  Nathan Bosworth
1007 
1008  Christian Brekalo
1009  Nick Brekalo
1010  Andrew Brennan
1011  Christopher Browne
1012  Gabriel Bruno
1013  Marcus Burke
1014  Craig Cameron
1015 
1016  Dean Cassidy
1017  Hasan Ceric
1018  Tony Chipchase
1019  Juho Choi
1020  Clint Chrisp
1021 
1022 
1023  Jye Coleman
1024  Dean Collins
1025  Andrew Collinson
1026  Collis James
1027 
1028  John Couts
1029  Mark Coverly
1030  Joshua Cruice
1031  Alfredo Da Silva
1032 
1033  Trevor Datson
1034 
1035  Brian Davies
1036  Jeffrey Davis
1037 
1038  Gerrit De Blanken
1039  James DeBruin
1040  Beau Deverall
1041  Claude Devos
1042  Manuel Dias
1043  Radwan Eltchelebi
1044 
1045 
1046 
1047  Terence Fisher
1048  Mark Fleay
1049  Craig Fleming
1050  Katie Forbes
1051  Terrence Fox
1052  Jason Francis
1053  Michael Franke
1054  Damien Freeth
1055  John Frino
1056  Steven Gaby
1057 
1058  David Gera
1059 
1060  Paul Gnech
1061  Shaun Goldstone
1062  Anthony Gostlow
1063 
1064  Phillip Grevell
1065  Roger Griffiths
1066  Michael Hagan
1067  Adrian Hage
1068 
1069  Peter Harris
1070 
1071 
1072  John Heckscher
1073  Geoffrey Height
1074  Todd Heron
1075  Marcelene Heslop
1076  Graeme Hocking
1077  Peter Hoek
1078  Andrew Holden
1079 
1080  Sean Hoskins
1081  Steven Hossack
1082  Harold Houghton
1083  Mervyn Houghton
1084 
1085 
1086  David Hull
1087  Joshua Humphries
1088  Glenn Hutton
1089 
1090  Elias Israel
1091 
1092  Sergio Jacobs
1093  Paul Jean-Pierre
1094  Craig Jeffs
1095  John Jenkins
1096  Kenneth Johnstone
1097  Mark Jones
1098  Ray Jones
1099  Robert Jones
1100  Fabian Joule
1101  Edan Kennedy
1102  Stuart (Alvin) Kerrigan
1103  Nigel Kiedo
1104  David Knyvett
1105  Travis Ladhams
1106 
1107  Peter Law
1108  Paul Leach
1109  Chong-Won Lee
1110 
1111  Mark Lindsay
1112 
1113  Shannon Livingstone
1114  Jason Lockhart
1115  Stephen Lowther
1116  William Lyall
1117  Donald MacKay
1118  Brett Mackie
1119  Gerarado Magtalas
1120  Simeon Magtalas
1121  Thomas Mahar
1122  Matthew Manning
1123 
1124  Garry Mansfield
1125 
1126  Calvin Martin
1127  Andrew Mazlin
1128  Adam McAnany
1129  Darren McCamish
1130  Gary McCarthy
1131  Shane McClure
1132  Ian McCracken
1133  Matthew McGurgan
1134  Wayne McMahon
1135 
1136  Spencer Meade
1137  Alan Middleton
1138  Simon Mieschbuehler
1139  Kane Mita
1140  Charles Mitchell
1141 
1142  Erwin Montiere
1143  Nicholas Morley
1144  Steven Mott
1145  Steven Moxon
1146  Len Mudri
1147  Ian Mullan
1148 
1149  Christopher Murray
1150  Michael Narbey
1151  Rodney Nelson
1152  Stuart Noakes
1153  Gregory Norris
1154  Stephen Novak
1155  Thomas O'Brien
1156  Luke O'Fee
1157  Damien O'Kane
1158  Russel Olsen
1159  Martin Osborne
1160  Robert Osbourne
1161  Pavo Parad
1162  Trevor Park
1163 
1164  Graeme Penglase
1165  Mark Pertile
1166  Robert Peters
1167  Sotha Pheng
1168  Aaron Phyland
1169  David Pidgeon
1170  Robert Pippia
1171  Murray Porter
1172 
1173  Matthew Ramage
1174  Daniel Reddie
1175  Ronald Robinson
1176  Wayne Roelandts
1177 
1178  Phillip Rowell
1179  Steven Sakic
1180  Jin (Fred) Sang-Yoo
1181  Ivan Sapina
1182  Michael Schoeman
1183  Dimitru Serban
1184  Yong Shao
1185  Denny Singleton
1186 
1187  Charles Snyman
1188  Kevin Squibb
1189  Ralph Stapelfeldt
1190  Gary Stramare
1191  Clive Sucks
1192  Steven Sulenta
1193  Steven Tarran
1194  Gary Taylor
1195  Joseph Taylor
1196  Allan Thompson
1197  Bradley Thompson
1198  Christopher Thornhill
1199  Neil Tollison
1200  Alberto Tome
1201  Brett Tooby
1202  Andre Turner
1203  Mark Tutton
1204  Brendan Tye
1205  Colin Tyrer
1206  Peter Ugle
1207  Johnny Van Wyk
1208  Arnoldus Van Wyke
1209  Adrian Vandersluis
1210  Darryl Vickers
1211  Joel Von Nida
1212  Noel Webster
1213  Dean Weiss
1214 
1215  Drew Wickenden
1216 
1217 
1218  Gabriel Williams
1219  Gregory Williams
1220  Henry Wynkwaardt
1221  Noel Zanetti
1222  Matthew Zonta
1223  Pero Zuvela
1224  Michael Abelha
1225  Richard Alcott
1226  David Ali
1227  Noel Amari
1228 
1229  Ryan Augustus
1230  Mark Bailey
1231  David Baines
1232  Fred Baker
1233  Reyon Band
1234  Antony Barlow
1235  Liam Barron
1236  Todd Bartlett
1237  Laurence Bascombe
1238  John Basso
1239  Mark Bateman
1240  Richard Bauer
1241  John Bernard
1242  Craig Berry
1243 
1244  Morgan Blake
1245  Ellen Bolton
1246  Slobodan Brakus
1247  Benjamin Brand
1248 
1249  Tyrone Briffa
1250 
1251  Ivaso Buac
1252  Ben Burns
1253  Ian Byrne
1254  Iain Calder
1255  Aaron Calley
1256  Ross Cameron
1257  Les Camilleri
1258 
1259  Luke Cashman
1260  Damien Chant
1261  Michael Christensen
1262 
1263  Paul Cole
1264 
1265  Anthony Cooper
1266  Jason Cornwell
1267  Clyde Cowley
1268 
1269  Michael Crook
1270 
1271 
1272  Graeme Daniel
1273  Mathias Dann
1274 
1275  Andrew Davies
1276  Kevin Davis
1277  Gary Davison
1278  Joe De Faria
1279  Matthew De Glanville
1280  Chad De Rooy
1281 
1282  Wade Den Ridder
1283  Matthew Denton
1284  Daniele Dimasi
1285  Arnolda Do Carmo
1286  Andrew Dobson
1287  Tony Dobson
1288 
1289  Roland Edwards
1290 
1291  Cameron Ewart
1292  Bud Feenstra
1293  Miroslav Ferluga
1294  Paulo Fernandes
1295 
1296 
1297  Tristan Fuller
1298  Andrew Gaffney
1299  Graeme Geddes
1300  Peter Geisner
1301  Nicholas George
1302  Guiseppe Giglia
1303  Chris Gillen
1304 
1305  Craig Goold
1306 
1307  Ian Grace
1308  Joseph Green
1309  Phillip Green
1310  Andrew Greene
1311  Paul Grgurovic
1312  Mark Haak
1313  David Hacking
1314  Gabriel Halkyard
1315  Steven Hall
1316  Lyncon Halligan
1317  Cy Hamilton
1318  Chris Hancock
1319  Jarrid Harrison
1320  Greg Hatchett
1321  Jarrad Hawkins
1322 
1323  Luke Heaney
1324 
1325  Malcolm Herring
1326 
1327  Nathan Hicks
1328  Ben Hodkinson
1329  Tim Holdsworth
1330  Craig Holst
1331 
1332  Karatehana Horo
1333  Kevin Howat
1334  Vince Howes
1335  Tyrone Hoys
1336  Gavin Hughes
1337  Victor Hugo
1338  Paul Hulbert
1339  Mark Huyshe
1340  Jamie Ingie
1341  Norman Jamieson
1342 
1343  Quentin Jensen
1344  Michelle Jeremiah
1345  Ashley Jones
1346  Bodhi Jones
1347  Martin Jones
1348 
1349  Savo Katic
1350  Kosta Katsidis
1351  James Keene
1352  Paul Kelly
1353  David Kemp
1354  Joshua Klynsoon
1355  Milan Krstanoski
1356  Tonganu Kukutai
1357  Nathan Lake
1358  Daniel Lawrence
1359  Jeffrey Lawson
1360  Shane Leworthy
1361  Robin Lilly
1362  Charles Liness
1363  William Logan
1364  Christopher Luta
1365  Jason MacDonald
1366 
1367  Callum Malloch-Smith
1368 
1369  Cleopas Mashuta
1370  Craig Maxwell
1371 
1372  Dean McBride
1373  Craig McCartney
1374  Charles McClellan
1375  Duncan McDonald
1376  Ian McDonald
1377  Nicole McGinty
1378  Allan McKinnon
1379  Ross McMiles
1380  Alan McMillan
1381 
1382  Kenneth Mendoza
1383 
1384  Charles Miller
1385  Phillip Millington
1386  Benjamin Morcom
1387  Matthew Morehu
1388 
1389 
1390  Jeremi Musulin
1391  Glen Neal
1392 
1393  Tim Nelson
1394  Justin Noakes
1395  Nowak Woyciech
1396  Aurelio Nunes
1397  Ashley O'Brien
1398  Tim Ogden
1399  Mao Ouk
1400  David Ovens
1401 
1402 
1403 
1404  Ben Penglase
1405  Joel Penglase
1406  Ashley Pickles
1407  Darryl Pickles
1408  Ryan Pickles
1409  John Pratt
1410  John Preston
1411  Colin Price
1412  Curtis Ransfield
1413  Gerald Ransfield
1414  Steven Reid
1415  Glen Robinson
1416  Paul Roche
1417 
1418  Rodrigo Ruiz
1419  Joseph Ryder
1420  Grgo Saric
1421  Moreno Serramono
1422  Jose Simoes
1423  Kenneth Simon
1424  Todd Sitnikoski
1425  Shelby Skinner
1426  Hamish Smith
1427  Mark Smith
1428 
1429  Kurt Stellenburg
1430  Andrew Stevens
1431 
1432  Selina Stolp
1433 
1434  Wayne Sutherland
1435  James Taylor
1436  Jeremy Teaia
1437  Shane Thomas
1438  Leslie Thompson
1439  Paul Todd
1440  Karl Travers
1441  Joshua Trunfio
1442  Herbert Tucker
1443  Angela Tumney
1444 
1445  Matthew Uepa
1446  Raul Uriona
1447 
1448  Andrea Vaega
1449  Christopher Van Arkel
1450  Liam Wakefield
1451  Michael Walker
1452 
1453  Alan Walker
1454  Simon Wallace
1455  Steve Waltl
1456  Michael Webb
1457 
1458 
1459 
1460  Rodney Williams
1461  Jason Wilson
1462  Daryl Wood
1463  John Wyllie
1464  Tyron Youlden
1465  Leslie Young
1466  Matthew Young
1467 
1468  James Zauch
1469  Charles Bell
1470  Richard D'Costa
1471  Jarrad Garrick
1472  James Odiam
1473  Colin Searle
1474  Joe Silk
Details
AGLC
United Group Resources Pty Ltd v Calabro (No 4) [2010] FCA 791
Case
[2010] FCA 791
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of United Group Resources Pty Ltd v Calabro (No 4), the dispute involved the service of originating process, specifically whether the respondents had been served in a manner compliant with the Federal Court Rules. The matter was heard in the Federal Court of Australia. The applicants sought a declaration that personal service had been effected and argued that the purpose of service had been achieved as the respondents had notice of the proceedings and appeared conditionally. The legal issues before the court revolved around the interpretation and application of the rules concerning service of originating process, specifically under O 7 of the Federal Court Rules, and whether the court should dispense with the requirements of the Rules under O 1 r 8.

The court considered the arguments presented and the authorities cited, finding that the purpose of service is to ensure that notice of the proceedings is given to the respondent. It was established that while some respondents were not personally served, there was evidence that all respondents were aware of the proceedings. The applicants had not provided evidence of the steps taken to serve each respondent personally or why it was impractical to do so, as required by O 7 r 9(1). However, the court accepted that some affidavits had been provided detailing the efforts to achieve service. The court concluded that the applicants had not discharged the onus of proving that the originating process had been served in a manner conforming with the rules.

Accordingly, the court declined to make the declarations sought by the applicants and dismissed the motions. The matter was listed for directions, and liberty to apply was granted. The final orders of the court were that the motions be dismissed, the matter be listed for directions, and there be liberty to apply.

Orders

Orders of the court

1. The motions are dismissed.

2. The matter be listed for directions on 31 August 2010 at 10.45 am.

3. There be liberty to apply.

Note:

Background

Background to the litigation

Full text does not contain this section.

Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

Full text does not contain this section.

Decision

Reasons for decision

Consistently with the authorities discussed at [30]-[31], the only argument advanced for the applicants is that if the purpose of the rules as to service is to ensure that notice of the proceedings is given to a respondent, then in instances where it is clear that the giving of notice (even before an unconditional appearance is filed) has been achieved, then as the purpose of service is attained, it is inappropriate to make a declaration that personal service has not been effected. This argument succeeded. It is not the argument in Robinson (which failed), that there had been a submission to jurisdiction precluding any argument as to service being raised.CONCLUSION For the forgoing reasons I decline to make the declarations sought and the motions seeking the declarations will be dismissed. I will hear counsel as to any consequential orders and the making of further directions.

Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

The onus is on the applicants to prove that the originating process has been served on the respondents in a manner which conforms with the service requirements of the rules. CONSIDERATION There is certainly evidence that some of the conditional respondents were not personally served with the originating process. There is also evidence that in a small number of cases, some conditional respondents were not served in any sense with the process in that they did not at any time receive a copy of it. On the other hand, there is no evidence that any moving respondent was either unaware of the proceeding or unaware that he or she was a respondent to the proceeding. Given the substantial publicity surrounding the commencement of the proceeding and the letters referred to below (at 25) this may not be surprising. This is a significant issue in light of the approach taken by the courts as to what will be personal service. For the conditional respondents, it is argued that the applicants chose to join some 1500 respondents and must be taken to have been aware from the inception of the proceeding that the originating process was required to be served personally on each of them. It had been open to the applicants, on the first return date, at the hearing of the urgent application for the applicants to seek an order for substituted service. Although the applicants sought and obtained an order for substituted service in relation to the further or extended order made by the Court on 5 February 2010, that order was not stated to apply to either the order made on 28 January 2010 or to the originating process. The respondents also contend that there is no adequate explanation for failure to personally serve considering that it was open to the applicants to serve the conditional respondents personally at work. However this argument overlooks the fact that the conditional respondents were allegedly not attending work which was the very reason for the commencement of the proceeding and for the alternative measures taken to attempt to effect service. For the respondents, it is argued that the applicants have failed to adduce any evidence regarding:(a) the steps that they have taken to serve each of the respondents ‘personally’; or(b)why it is or was ‘impractical’ to serve the respondents personally with the application – see O 7 r 9(1) and Porter v Freudenberg (1915) 1 KB 857 at 888-889. At a technical level while there is some force in these submissions, I do not accept that they are entirely correct. The applicants have relied on affidavits of Mr Jack Peter Lee, Mr Rodney Charles Burnby and Mr Adie Rama Kadir which all relate to the steps taken to achieve service. Mr Kadir is engaged with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA (CCIWA) and is an Employee Relations Advisor. He says that after the originating application and orders were made, he assisted in relation to the instruction of the Karratha bailiff and the Dampier bailiff regarding serving the originating process and the order on each of the respondents.