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  4. Moreton Media Group Inc v Department of Justice and Attorney General, Office of Fair Trading - [2015] QCAT 107

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Moreton Media Group Inc v Department of Justice and Attorney General, Office of Fair Trading[2015] QCAT 107

Moreton Media Group Inc v Department of Justice and Attorney General, Office of Fair Trading[2015] QCAT 107

CITATION:

Moreton Media Group Inc v Department of Justice and Attorney General, Office of Fair Trading [2015] QCAT 107

PARTIES:

Moreton Media Group Inc

(Applicant/Appellant)

 

v

 

Department of Justice and Attorney General, Office of Fair Trading

(Respondent)

APPLICATION NUMBER:

GAR012 -15

MATTER TYPE:

General administrative review matters

HEARING DATE:

On the papers

HEARD AT:

Brisbane

DECISION OF:

Senior Member Stilgoe OAM

DELIVERED ON:

24 April 2015

DELIVERED AT:

Brisbane

ORDERS MADE:

  1. The operation of the decision of the Office of Fair Trading dated 12 December 2014 is stayed until 31 May 2015 or further order of the tribunal, whichever is earlier.

CATCHWORDS:

GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW – INCORPORATED ASSOCIATIONS - STAY – where incorporation of incorporated association cancelled – where matters might be addressed by general meeting – where cancelled corporation cannot call a meeting – where application for stay to enable meeting – whether grounds for a stay

Croney v Nand [1999] 2 Qd R 342

Kostopoulos v G E Commercial Finance Australia Pty Ltd [2005] QCA 311

Cook's Construction Pty Ltd v Stork Food Systems Australasia Pty Ltd [2008] 2 Qd R 453

Chief Executive Officer, Department for Child Protection v S (2007) 98 ALD 329

APPEARANCES:

This matter was heard and determined on the papers pursuant to s 32 of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 (Qld) (QCAT Act).

REASONS FOR DECISION

  1. [1]
    Moreton Media Group Inc holds the licence for 99FM, a community radio station based in the Redcliffe/Moreton Bay area. It has not lodged a return with the Office of Fair Trading since the 2011 financial year. It has not held an annual general meeting for some time and there is confusion about the status of its membership list. The Office of Fair Trading communicated its concerns to Moreton Media but it did not address those concerns. The Office of Fair Trading then cancelled Moreton Media’s incorporation.
  2. [2]
    Moreton Media has filed an application for review. It has also filed another application for a stay of the decision.
  3. [3]
    The question of whether the tribunal should stay the original decision is usually addressed according to established principles: Is it an appropriate case to grant a stay?[1]  Does the applicant have an arguable case?[2]  Would a refusal of a stay render the application nugatory?[3]  Does the balance of convenience favour granting the stay?[4]
  4. [4]
    Moreton Media want a stay of the decision so that it can convene a general meeting by 31 May 2015. A general meeting is the only way that Moreton Media can address the concerns of the Office of Fair Trading. Specifically, the meeting must[5]:
    1. Be the subject of widespread notice. That notice should include on air announcements and written notice to all people who have been members within the past five years, whether or not they are current financial members.
    2. Be the subject of at least two weeks’ notice.
    3. Have an audio record of proceedings at the meeting.
    4. Be chaired by an independent person.
    5. Facilitate the election of all Board position, as an interim management meeting pending the next Annual General Meeting.
    6. Fix a date for the next Annual General Meeting.
  5. [5]
    Moreton Media has no status while the Office of Fair Trading cancellation is on place. Therefore, it cannot call the meeting. Unless it can call a meeting, it has no capacity to address the Office of Fair Trading concerns. If Moreton Media remains deregistered, there are dire consequences for 99FM.
  6. [6]
    The Office of Fair Trading agrees that Moreton Media should be given a chance[6].
  7. [7]
    I am not necessarily persuaded that Moreton Media has an arguable case. However, the refusal of a stay will render the application nugatory. The Office of Fair Trading will suffer no detriment by the grant of a stay for a short period and specific purpose. The grant of the stay may have significant benefits for Moreton Media. Therefore, I propose to stay the operation of the decision dated 12 December 2014 until 31 May 2015 or further order of the tribunal, whichever is earlier, for the specific purpose of facilitating a general meeting.

Footnotes

[1] Croney v Nand [1999] 2 Qd R 342 at 348.

[2] Cook's Construction Pty Ltd v Stork Food Systems Australasia Pty Ltd [2008] 2 Qd R 453 at 455.

[3] Chief Executive Officer, Department for Child Protection v S (2007) 98 ALD 329 at 331.

[4] Kostopoulos v G E Commercial Finance Australia Pty Ltd [2005] QCA 311.

[5] Email Office of Fair Trading to Messrs Honchin, Atchison and Chalmers 13 October 2014.

[6] Email Office of Fair Trading to QCAT 21 April 2015.

Close

Editorial Notes

  • Published Case Name:

    Moreton Media Group Inc v Department of Justice and Attorney General, Office of Fair Trading

  • Shortened Case Name:

    Moreton Media Group Inc v Department of Justice and Attorney General, Office of Fair Trading

  • MNC:

    [2015] QCAT 107

  • Court:

    QCAT

  • Judge(s):

    Senior Member Stilgoe

  • Date:

    24 Apr 2015

Appeal Status

Please note, appeal data is presently unavailable for this judgment. This judgment may have been the subject of an appeal.

Cases Cited

Case NameFull CitationFrequency
Cook's Construction Pty Ltd v Stork Food Systems Aust Pty Ltd[2008] 2 Qd R 453; [2008] QCA 322
2 citations
Jump To
Cite 1 - [2008] 2 Qd R 453
Cite 2 - [2008] 2 Qd R 453
Croney v Nand [1999] 2 Qd R 342
2 citations
Jump To
Cite 1 - [1999] 2 Qd R 342
Cite 2 - [1999] 2 Qd R 342
Department for Child Protection v S (2007) 98 ALD 329
2 citations
Jump To
Cite 1 - (2007) 98 ALD 329
Cite 2 - (2007) 98 ALD 329
Kostopoulos v G E Commercial Finance Australia Pty Ltd [2005] QCA 311
2 citations
Jump To
Cite 1 - [2005] QCA 311
Cite 2 - [2005] QCA 311

Cases Citing

Case NameFull CitationFrequency
Leavain Pty Ltd v Brisbane City Council [2015] QCAT 3652 citations
1

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