Westcott v Westcott

This matter concerned an application for special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia by Hilda Cornwallis Westcott against Edmund Arthur Westcott. The original dispute arose in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, where the petitioner sought dissolution of marriage on the grounds of desertion, but her petition was dismissed by Gordon J.

The legal issue before the High Court was whether the circumstances presented by the petitioner justified the granting of special leave to appeal, particularly in light of her failure to lodge security for the costs of the appeal within the time prescribed by the Rules of the High Court 1911. The petitioner argued that her poverty had prevented her from applying to reduce or dispense with the security until the time for lodging it had almost expired.

The Court determined that the petitioner's inability to provide funds for an application to reduce or dispense with security due to poverty, by itself, did not constitute special circumstances warranting the granting of special leave to appeal. The Court noted that the appeal sought to challenge a finding of fact and that no other special circumstances had been demonstrated. Consequently, the application for special leave to appeal was refused.