Siemer v Registrar of the Supreme Court

In the Supreme Court of New Zealand, Vincent Ross Siemer sought to appeal against a decision made by the Deputy Registrar of the Court of Appeal, which refused to accept applications for filing as they related to an abandoned appeal. The Deputy Registrar’s decision was dated 21 January 2015. Siemer attempted to file an application for leave to appeal in the Supreme Court on 27 January 2015. However, the Registrar of the Supreme Court refused to accept the application on 28 January 2015, on the basis that the Court did not have jurisdiction to entertain the appeal, as it was a decision made by a Deputy Registrar of the Court of Appeal and not by the Court of Appeal itself. Siemer subsequently applied for a review of the Registrar’s decision under section 28(2) of the Supreme Court Act 2003.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the Supreme Court had jurisdiction to review the decision of the Deputy Registrar of the Court of Appeal. The Court considered whether it was appropriate to entertain the proposed appeal, given that the decision in question was made by a Deputy Registrar rather than the Court of Appeal. The Court referenced previous cases in which it had held that it did not have jurisdiction to hear appeals against decisions made by Deputy Registrars. The Court noted that the Registrar was correct to refuse to accept Siemer’s application for leave, as it was not within the jurisdiction of the Court to hear the proposed appeal.

The Court dismissed Siemer’s application for review of the Registrar’s decision. The Court held that the Registrar was correct in refusing to accept Siemer’s application for leave to appeal, as the Supreme Court did not have jurisdiction to hear the proposed appeal against a decision made by a Deputy Registrar of the Court of Appeal. The Court dismissed the application for review under section 28(2) of the Supreme Court Act 2003.