1 Sept 2022
The summons to permit late service of the 2nd supplemental witness statement is dismissed because the defendant failed to demonstrate exceptional circumstances to justify the lateness; disclosure of the recording occurred over three years earlier and the delay would cause prejudice and likely disrupt the trial scheduled in three weeks.
10 Aug 2018
Leave to file the 2nd supplemental witness statement was refused because the proposed statement sought to introduce a new auditing dimension at a very late stage without prior pleading, interrogatories or discovery of relevant documents; the delay was attributable to the defence and would cause serious prejudice and likely disrupt the trial timetable.
12 Apr 2018
The application to file a supplemental witness statement is allowed because the trial is distant (over 18 months away), the defendants disclosed the need at the Case Management Conference and are remedying deficiencies, and the plaintiff demonstrated no real prejudice from the filing.
9 Aug 2017
Registrar granted leave to serve the supplemental witness statement in part because the applicant provided a reasonable explanation for delay, there was insufficient evidence of abuse of process, the contested material was relevant and probative to factual disputes about contractual performance, and prejudice to defendants was manageable by case management and costs; specific passages that were opinion, expert or contradictory to earlier statements were expunged.
12 Jun 2014
The summons was dismissed on the ground of delay alone because the application was very late, the plaintiff failed to comply with court directions and offered no acceptable explanation, there was no evidential basis for the lateness, and the late evidence would prejudice the defendant and disrupt the scheduled trial.
22 Jan 2014
Leave was granted because, notwithstanding inordinate delay, case management considerations favoured allowing the defendant to correct and clarify his evidence before trial to avoid extending trial time and causing greater prejudice if matters only emerged in witnesses' oral evidence; the defendant would attend to be cross-examined so contradictions could be clarified; any prejudice was mitigable by allowing a reply witness statement and making a costs order.
12 Jul 2013
The court exercised a balancing exercise: although the passports and photos were disclosed late and the explanation was unsatisfactory, their prima facie relevance justified granting retrospective leave to file the 3rd List and leave to serve the supplemental witness statement subject to stringent conditions to protect defendants from prejudice — inspection of originals, provision of a schedule and legible copies, reserved admissibility of the passports pending possible objection and inspection, tight timetables for objections and any reply evidence, prohibition on witnesses amplifying the la…
4 Feb 2013
The judge exercised discretion to allow both the late filing of the supplemental witness statement and the late amendment to add the counterclaim because the supplemental statement was strictly in reply to allegations already made by the plaintiff, fairness required the defendant be allowed to respond, the counterclaim was a natural extension of the pleaded defence and added no new issues, and there was minimal risk of disrupting the trial.
24 Jan 2013
Leave was granted because the application was not unduly late (no trial date fixed), and procedural objections about submissions within the statement or alleged without prejudice privilege could and should be addressed later; the court will allow filing and the trial judge can disregard improper material. Costs were awarded to the plaintiff and fixed at $1,000.
2 May 2012
The court exercised its discretion to dismiss the applications because the plaintiff's applications were late without good explanation, the new documents and supplemental witness statement were not shown to be relevant to a particular issue (only to general credibility or background), and admitting them would unfairly prejudice the defendants and divert their trial preparation.