Abdel-Messih v Wang [2018] NSWCATAP 60

Abdel-Messih v Wang [2018] NSWCATAP 60

The appeal was dismissed because the notice of appeal was in time but no appeal ground succeeded. The rent arrears order was within jurisdiction because the Tribunal found arrears were owing and properly limited the order to the $15,000 statutory cap, causing no practical injustice. The Tribunal did not err in law in assessing whether the landlord unreasonably withheld consent to partial sub-letting: it considered matters relevant to a reasonable landlord, including pending termination proceedings, the tenant's management of the premises, prior sub-letting disputes, identity and documentation concerns, and the history concerning the dog. The Tribunal was entitled to use evidence about the...

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
08 March 2018
Procedural Posture
Residential Tenancy Appeal Under the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (nsw) / Appeal Panel Decision on Appeal From Consumer and Commercial Division Orders for Rent Arrears, Refusal to File Additional Evidence, and Dismissal of Tenant's Compensation Application
Outcome
Appeal dismissed; application for leave to appeal on other grounds refused; stay orders made on 28 September 2017 lifted; respondent's costs application to be dealt with by directions.
Legal Topics
['rent Arrears' 'partial Sub Letting' 'landlord Consent' 'procedural Fairness' 'leave to Appeal' 'costs']
['residential Tenancies' 'administrative Law' 'civil Procedure'] ['rent Arrears' 'partial Sub Letting' 'landlord Consent' 'procedural Fairness' 'leave to Appeal' 'costs']

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 1 Authorities cited 2 Party arguments 2 Amounts and remedies 1
Sign in to unlock

Procedural Posture

Residential Tenancy Appeal Under the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (nsw) / Appeal Panel Decision on Appeal From Consumer and Commercial Division Orders for Rent Arrears, Refusal to File Additional Evidence, and Dismissal of Tenant's Compensation Application

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether the appeal was filed within time under the Civil and Administrative Tribunal Rules 2014.' 'Whether the Tribunal had jurisdiction to make a rent arrears order capped at $15,000 when the admitted arrears exceeded that amount.' 'Whether the Tribunal had regard only to relevant considerations and properly interpreted the provisions governing withholding consent to partial sub-letting.' "Whether the Tribunal could consider evidence about the tenant keeping a dog at the premises when assessing the reasonableness of the landlord's refusal to consent to sub-letting." 'Whether the tenant was denied procedural fairness by refusal to allow additional evidence or submissions after the hearing.' 'Whether leave should be granted to appeal on grounds other than questions of law.']

Ratio Decidendi

The appeal was dismissed because the notice of appeal was in time but no appeal ground succeeded. The rent arrears order was within jurisdiction because the Tribunal found arrears were owing and properly limited the order to the $15,000 statutory cap, causing no practical injustice. The Tribunal did not err in law in assessing whether the landlord unreasonably withheld consent to partial sub-letting: it considered matters relevant to a reasonable landlord, including pending termination proceedings, the tenant's management of the premises, prior sub-letting disputes, identity and documentation concerns, and the history concerning the dog. The Tribunal was entitled to use evidence about the...

Court Disposition

Appeal dismissed; application for leave to appeal on other grounds refused; stay orders made on 28 September 2017 lifted; respondent's costs application to be dealt with by directions.

Orders

  • ['Appeal dismissed.' "Respondent's costs application to be dealt with in accordance with Directions given at para [58]." 'The stay orders made on 28 September 2017 are lifted.']