Vickery v Thoroughgood

In the High Court of New Zealand, the case of Vickery v Thoroughgood was heard by Gordon J. The applicant, Ian Vickery, sought an order for civil contempt against the respondents, Christine and Patrick Thoroughgood, due to alleged breaches of an undertaking given to the District Court. The application was considered an abuse of process due to the inclusion of scandalous allegations against the judges and counsel involved in the case, which were deemed irrelevant and inflammatory.

The legal issues before the court were whether the application, as presented, constituted an abuse of the court's process and, if so, what orders should be made to address this. The court determined that the application was indeed an abuse of process, as it not only went beyond the relevant issues but also included highly inappropriate and scandalous allegations against the judiciary. This misuse of the court's process warranted a decisive response to prevent further abuse.

Gordon J ordered the proceeding to be struck out, highlighting that if Vickery were to amend his application and affidavit to focus solely on the alleged breaches of the undertaking, the court might reconsider the filing of the amended documents. Given that the decision was made without hearing Vickery, he retained the right to appeal the court's ruling. The court also mandated that a copy of the decision be served on the respondents if practicable.