New South Wales Consolidated Regulations

UNIFORM CIVIL PROCEDURE RULES 2005 - REG 12.8

12.8 Additional grounds for dismissal of proceedings by Supreme Court or Land and Environment Court

(cf SCR Part 32A, rules 1 and 2)

(1) This rule applies to proceedings in the Supreme Court or the Land and Environment Court.

(2) The court may, of its own motion, make an order dismissing the proceedings if it appears from the court's records that, for over 5 months, no party to the proceedings has taken any step in the proceedings.

(3) Such an order may not be made--

(a) if the proceedings, or any part of the proceedings, are listed for a future date, or

(b) if there are any notices of motion or other applications in the proceedings that are yet to be determined, or

(c) if a party satisfies the court that such an order should not be made.

(4) Before such an order is made, notice of the proposed order is to be given to the plaintiff and to each other active party, being a notice that gives each of them a reasonable opportunity to be heard in relation to the proposal.

(5) A notice under subrule (4) may be served on a person--

(a) if the person has provided an email address to the court, by sending it to that email address, or

(b) if the person has not provided an email address or the email has been returned undelivered, by sending it by post, addressed to the person--

(i) at the person's address for service, or

(ii) if the person has no address for service, at the person's last known address,

in an envelope marked with the court's return address.

(6) A notice, posted as referred to in subrule (5)(b), is taken to have been received by the person to whom it was addressed even if it is returned to the court as having not been delivered to the addressee.

(7) Despite subrule (4), the court may make an order under subrule (2) without notice being given under subrule (4) if--

(a) the proceedings the subject of the order are proceedings that are entered in the Possession List, and

(b) it appears from the court's records that, for over 9 months, no party to the proceedings has taken any step in the proceedings.