EHT Pty Ltd v The Brock Shop Pty Ltd & Anor [2011] QDC 94

1-1 [2011] QDC 94 DISTRICT COURT CIVIL JURISDICTION JUDGE ROBIN QC No 547 of 2009 EHT PTY LTD Plaintiff and THE BROCK SHOP PTY LTD and FRANCES MARY ARGIRO and GIUSEPPE ARGIRO Defendants BRISBANE ..DATE 19/05/2011 ORDER CATCHWORDS Uniform Civil Procedure Rules r 990, r 991 Leave to plaintiff's solicitors to withdraw - court does not follow usual practice of nominating an address that may be used for service pending proper notification of a new one - defendants' solicitors did not take up opportunity to seek that benefit - service on plaintiff's registered office available under the general law. -- 1 of 3 -- 1-2 ORDER 1 10 20 30 40 50 60 HIS HONOUR: The court makes an order in terms of the initialled draft. This is an application by the solicitors on the record for the plaintiff company for leave to withdraw. They establish that they have carried out the steps required by rules 990 and 991 to be entitled to the order. My usual practice in such a situation is to protect other parties who are at risk of losing the advantage of a useable address for service upon the withdrawal of solicitors, by indicating an address which may be used for service on the party losing representation until some new address for service is properly notified. The arrangements directed typically authorise use of the address of the withdrawing solicitors, it being made clear that they are no longer the solicitors and are under no obligation beyond holding documents to await inquiry by the erstwhile client. Mr Stretton in this instance has persuaded me the court ought not to trouble his firm even to that extent. There are some good reasons to fall in with his approach. One is that he has notified the defendants' solicitors of this application. They have acknowledged that and indicate they don't wish to appear. They haven't indicated that they'd like anything in particular done in relation to an address for service. -- 2 of 3 -- 1-3 ORDER 1 10 20 30 40 50 60 Next is the consideration that the plaintiff is a company with a registered office at which, under the general law, documents can be served and by use of post. Finally, it is relatively unusual that the solicitors withdrawing represent a plaintiff. In the typical case they're representing a defendant. Loss of a useable address for service suffered by a plaintiff in the general run of things is likely to be more of a blow than the corresponding loss imposed on a defendant. ... HIS HONOUR: Order as per initialled draft. ----- -- 3 of 3 --