Wang v State of New South Wales

The applicants, Mr. and Mrs. Wang, sought leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a decision of a single judge of the Supreme Court. That decision had refused their application for leave to conduct proceedings in the Supreme Court without engaging a solicitor, pursuant to rule 7.14(2) of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (NSW).

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the single judge had erred in law in refusing the Wangs' application for leave to represent themselves. This required the Court to consider the principles governing the exercise of discretion under rule 7.14(2), which permits a party to conduct proceedings without a solicitor only if the court grants leave.

Macfarlan and Payne JJA dismissed the application for leave to appeal. Their Honours reasoned that the single judge had correctly applied the relevant principles in refusing leave. The Court noted that the discretion to grant leave under rule 7.14(2) is to be exercised with caution, particularly in complex litigation. The applicants had failed to demonstrate that the single judge had erred in principle or that their decision was plainly wrong, and therefore leave to appeal was refused. The applicants were ordered to pay the costs of the application.