Woolnough v Isaac Regional Council (No 2)

The case of Woolnough v Isaac Regional Council (No 2) involved a directions hearing before the Supreme Court of Queensland. The plaintiffs, Woolnough, sought to amend their statement of claim, which was opposed by the defendant, Isaac Regional Council. The matter involved procedural issues regarding witness and document lists to be provided by the parties ahead of the trial.

The court was required to decide whether the plaintiffs could file a further amended statement of claim without leave, as an earlier order had directed that no such amendments could be made without the leave of the court. The court also needed to determine whether further directions were required for the parties to comply with earlier orders regarding the provision of witness and document lists for the trial.

In deciding the matter, the court held that the further amended statement of claim filed by the plaintiffs was struck out, as it had not been filed in accordance with the earlier order. The court provided further directions for the parties to comply with earlier orders regarding the provision of witness and document lists for the trial. The plaintiffs were directed to provide an amended list of proposed lay witnesses with summaries of their evidence in chief, while the defendant was directed to provide a list of documents they intended to tender at trial, excluding expert statements or reports. The court also directed that no lay evidence be given at trial by any lay witness unless such evidence was fairly raised by the summary provided in accordance with the directions.

The court reserved the costs of the hearing of 11 September 2017 and gave the parties liberty to apply on the giving of three days’ notice.