Universal Trade Exchange Pty Ltd v Westpac Banking Corporation

Universal Trade Exchange Pty Ltd sought to set aside a statutory demand served by Westpac Banking Corporation. The dispute centred on whether the applicant had correctly served the statutory demand application on the respondent, as required by the Corporations Act. The core legal issue was whether the failure to include the return date on the copy of the application served on the respondent constituted a defect that rendered the application incompetent. The Court examined the statutory requirements under sections 459G(3)(b) and 467A of the Corporations Act, focusing on the necessity for an exact copy of the application to be served, including the return date. The Court found that the omission of the return date from the copy of the application served on the respondent meant that the application was not properly made. This conclusion was supported by the decision in Robowash Pty Ltd v Robowash Finance Pty Ltd, which held that serving an incomplete copy of the application does not satisfy the statutory requirements. As a result, the Court declared the application incompetent.