Yowie Group Ltd and Bolton v Keybridge Capital Ltd (No 2)

The Full Court of the Supreme Court of New South Wales considered an application to adjourn an urgent appeal brought by Yowie Group Ltd and Mr. Bolton (the Applicants) against Keybridge Capital Ltd. The application for adjournment was filed the day before the scheduled hearing.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the Applicants had demonstrated sufficient grounds to warrant an adjournment of the urgent appeal. This question arose in circumstances where the Applicants' current counsel had only been briefed the day prior to the hearing, following the withdrawal of their previous counsel due to an alleged failure by the Applicants to secure counsel's fees. The previous counsel had, however, already settled submissions and amended the notice of appeal.

The Court dismissed the application for adjournment. The reasoning applied by the Court, though not detailed in the provided text, would have involved an assessment of whether the Applicants had provided a compelling reason for the late change of representation and the consequent need for an adjournment, particularly given the urgent nature of the appeal and the prior work undertaken by their previous counsel. The Court's decision indicates that the Applicants failed to satisfy the threshold for granting an adjournment in these circumstances.

The application was dismissed, and the Applicants were ordered to pay the costs of the application.