University of New South Wales v Huang

The University of New South Wales has appealed against a decision of the Federal Magistrate not to summarily dismiss Ms Huang’s application against it for, among other things, sexual harassment. The appeal concerns the Federal Magistrate’s refusal to summarily dismiss Ms Huang’s application for failure to comply with certain procedural orders and for abuse of process. The Federal Magistrate’s decision is found at [2011] FMCA 235. The University contends that the Federal Magistrate erred in not summarily dismissing Ms Huang’s application for failure to comply with the procedural orders and for abuse of process. The Federal Magistrate held that the University’s application was not well founded because the failure to file affidavits did not constitute a default of a kind which justified summary dismissal. He also held that the application was not an abuse of process. The Court dismissed the University’s appeal and upheld the Federal Magistrate’s decision.