1 In the course of the last week, the court has had before it several applications by the HIH liquidators seeking extensions of time under s.588FF(3)(b) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) in respect of foreshadowed proceedings under s.588FF(1) against identified persons. The relevant proceedings are 1790/04, 1839/04, 1877/04, 1878/04 and 1879/04. One of the applications is as yet undetermined and will be before the court again after this judgment is delivered.
2 The HIH liquidators also make a non-specific application in this proceedings, 1876/04. The form of order claimed in the originating process is:
"An order extending to a date 12 months from the date of filing this application, or such other period as the court thinks fit, the period within which the plaintiffs may make an application under section 588FF(1) of the Act with respect to any voidable transaction involving the HIH companies which have not been identified by the liquidators as at the date of the filing of this application."
3 The originating process was filed in court on 10 March 2004 and heard on that day. No person is named in it as a defendant. Read in support of the application was an affidavit of one of the liquidators, Mr McGrath, sworn on 9 March 2004. A further affidavit of Mr McGrath, sworn on 11 March 2004, has been filed and read this morning.
4 I should begin by referring to the relevant statutory provision and the question whether it permits the court to make an order of the kind now sought. Sub-sections (1) to (3) of s.588FF of the Corporations Act are in the following terms:
" Courts may make orders about voidable transactions
(1) Where, on the application of a company's liquidator, a court is satisfied that a transaction of the company is voidable because of section 588FE, the court may make one or more of the following orders:
(a) an order directing a person to pay to the company an amount equal to some or all of the money that the company has paid under the transaction;
(b) an order directing a person to transfer to the company property that the company has transferred under the transaction;
(c) an order requiring a person to pay to the company an amount that, in the court's opinion, fairly represents some or all of the benefits that the person has received because of the transaction;
(d) an order requiring a person to transfer to the company property that, in the court's opinion, fairly represents the application of either or both of the following:
(i) money that the company has paid under the transaction;
(ii) proceeds of property that the company has transferred under the transaction;
(e) an order releasing or discharging, wholly or partly, a debt incurred, or a security or guarantee given, by the company under or in connection with the transaction;
(f) if the transaction is an unfair loan and such a debt, security or guarantee has been assigned - an order directing a person to indemnify the company in respect of some or all of its liability to the assignee;
(g) an order providing for the extent to which, and the terms on which, a debt that arose under, or was released or discharged to any extent by or under, the transaction may be proved in a winding up of the company;
(h) an order declaring an agreement constituting, forming part of, or relating to, the transaction, or specified provisions of such an agreement, to have been void at and after the time when the agreement was made, or at and after a specified later time;
(i) an order varying such an agreement as specified in the order and, if the Court thinks fit, declaring the agreement to have had effect, as so varied, at and after the time when the agreement was made, or at and after a specified later time;
(j) an order declaring such an agreement, or specified provisions of such an agreement, to be unenforceable.