James (Liquidator), in the matter of Woodgamia CDEP Aboriginal Corporation (in liq) [2013] FCA 950

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT 1 This is an application by Jack James as liquidator of Woodgamia CDEP Aboriginal Corporation (in liq) (the corporation). It is an ex parte application, although all relevant interested parties have been served with the papers in this matter, including the Registrar of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporations (the Registrar). The plaintiff seeks relief under: (a) section 488(2) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (the Corporations Act) and ss 526-525(1) and (2) of the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (Cth) insofar as it relates to the plaintiff's application for a special leave to distribute a surplus; and (b) sections 480(a) and (d) of the Corporations Act, insofar as it relates to the plaintiff's application for the release of the plaintiff as liquidator of the corporation and the deregistration of the corporation by the Registrar. 2 The application is supported by the following affidavits: (a) Jack James, sworn 27 June 2013; and (b) Justin Peter Sims, sworn 13 August 2013. 3 The application, in addition, has a very detailed set of written submissions by the plaintiff, which I have considered in detail. I am satisfied, essentially, for the reasons set out in those submissions, subject to amendments which I will deal with shortly, that the orders sought by the plaintiff in the minute of proposed orders dated 15 August 2013, ought be made. 4 The primary amendment is to insert an additional order that the plaintiff, within seven days of compliance with order 1, as I will order, file an affidavit deposing to the fact that the surplus funds from the liquidation of the corporation, and which will be the subject of the special leave to distribute by these orders, after deduction of the plaintiff's costs, have been distributed to Carnarvon Trustees Aboriginal Corporation, consistently with Rule 10 of the Rule Book of the corporation. The consequential amendments of that are that proposed orders 2 through to 6 will be renumbered 3 to 7. The new 3 will be amended so that it reads, in the first line, rather than "complies with order 1", to now read "complies with orders 1 and 2", and the new 4, in the first line at the end, "the order 2 will become order 3". Accordingly, with those amendments, I will make the orders set out in the minute of proposed orders to which I have referred. I certify that the preceding four (4) numbered paragraphs are a true copy of the Reasons for Judgment herein of the Honourable Justice Gilmour.