Woodhouse v Thalis

Woodhouse v Thalis concerned an application for leave to appeal from a decision of Justice Bellew made on 15 December 2017. The applicant, Mr Woodhouse, who was a litigant in person, sought an adjournment of the hearing of the summons for leave to appeal on the grounds of ill health. Mr Woodhouse had emailed the Registrar stating he would not appear in court due to illness. The matter came before McColl and Meagher JJA.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the medical evidence provided by Mr Woodhouse demonstrated that he was unable to appear for the hearing due to medical reasons, and if so, whether the interests of justice warranted an adjournment.

The Court refused Mr Woodhouse’s application for an adjournment. The Court found that the medical evidence did not sufficiently demonstrate that Mr Woodhouse was unable to appear for the hearing. Consequently, the Court dismissed the application for leave to appeal. The Court also ordered Mr Woodhouse to pay the respondent’s costs of the application for leave to appeal and the hearing.