Williams v Commonwealth of Australia and Ors

[2013] HCATrans 226

[2013] HCATrans 226

IN THE HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Office of the Registry
  Sydney  No S154 of 2013

B e t w e e n -

RONALD WILLIAMS

Plaintiff

and

COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA

First Defendant

MINISTER FOR EDUCATION

Second Defendant

SCRIPTURE UNION QUEENSLAND

Third Defendant

Summons for directions

FRENCH CJ

TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

FROM PERTH BY VIDEO LINK TO SYDNEY

ON FRIDAY, 20 SEPTEMBER 2013, AT 10.04 AM

Copyright in the High Court of Australia

MR G.E.S. NG:   May it please the Court, I appear for the plaintiff.  (instructed by Horowitz & Bilinsky)

MR J.T. GLEESON, SC, Solicitor‑General of the Commonwealth of Australia:   May it please the Court, I appear with MR N.J. OWENS for the first and second defendants.  (instructed by Australian Government Solicitor)

MR D.F. JACKSON, QC:   Your Honour, I appear for the third defendant.  (instructed by Norton Rose Fulbright Australia)

HIS HONOUR:   Yes, Mr Ng.  There seems to be a fair measure of agreement as to at least the timetabling of pleadings and a draft special case.

MR NG:   Yes, that is so, your Honour.  As I understand it, your Honour has been provided with an indicative timetable for the further conduct of the proceedings on the basis of March or April hearing dates.  These were prepared by the Solicitor‑General for the Commonwealth.  They cause us no difficulty and perhaps it might be prudent for the Solicitor‑General just to take your Honour through those proposed indicative timetables.

HIS HONOUR:   Yes.  My inclination is not to automatically refer an agreed special case.  I would probably want to bring it back for a referral order after the agreed special case, if one is able to be agreed, has been lodged.  I will hear from the Solicitor‑General.

MR NG:   Yes.

HIS HONOUR:   Thank you.  Yes, Mr Solicitor.

MR GLEESON:   We are content with that, your Honour.  The only purpose for the prospective future timetable was just to indicate when the matter might be ready for a final hearing.  Our estimate would be the case may take up to three days, perhaps two and a half to three days.

HIS HONOUR:   Yes.

MR GLEESON:   If it were possible at some stage in the near future to know when that might be able to be accommodated in the Court’s calendar the parties can then, when we come back before the Court next time, have an agreed timetable to get us to that hearing.  Your Honour will see from those indicative timetables that March is probably the earliest it could realistically be done and that is a relatively tight timetable to get us to March on the assumption that we will have some interveners as well.

HIS HONOUR:   Yes.  What I was thinking of, Mr Solicitor, was having – in terms of the first minute of order, that is that which does not provide for an automatic referral as it were, is looking at order 6 to relist the matter for directions on 13 December at say 9.30.  It would either be in Canberra by video link to Sydney if necessary or in Sydney.  I cannot say for sure at the moment.  Then if there are no difficulties from my point of view with the special case, and assuming it has been agreed, then the timetable that is outlined for either a March or April hearing could be implemented.

MR GLEESON:   Yes, that is convenient, your Honour.  That is all we wish to raise this morning.

HIS HONOUR:   Yes, thank you.  Mr Jackson, do you have any difficulty with that?

MR JACKSON:   Your Honour, we are content with your Honour making an order in those terms.

HIS HONOUR:   Thank you very much.  I will make orders in the following terms:

1.The defendants file and serve defences on or before 28 October 2013.

2.The plaintiff file and serve any reply to the defences on or before 11 November 2013.

3.The plaintiff serve a draft special case on the defendants on or before 18 November 2013.

4.The defendants serve any proposed changes to the draft special case on the plaintiff on or before 2 December 2013.

5.The plaintiff file and serve any agreed special case on or before 9 December 2013.

6.The matter be relisted for further directions on 13 December 2013 at 9.30 am.

7.Liberty to apply to a Justice on three days written notice.

8.Costs of today be costs in the cause.

If there is nothing further, gentlemen, then I will adjourn the Court.  Thank you.

AT 10.09 AM THE MATTER WAS ADJOURNED