Australia, June 9 -- New South Wales Land and Environment Court issued text of the following judgement:

1. The Respondent, by Notice of Motion ('the Motion') filed on 30 April 2025, seeks the following orders:

1) The hearing dates in this matter of 12 and 13 May 2025 be vacated.

2) The procedural orders 2b and 2c made on 28 April 2025 be vacated

3) The "usual directions", direction 6 be vacated.

4) The matter is listed for further conciliation on 12 May 2025, or such other time as convenient.

2. In support of the Motion, the Respondent relies on the affidavit of Samuel Bridgeford dated 30 April 2025.

3. The Respondent seeks to vacate the hearing date, on the basis that two witnesses, Mr Bryne and Mr Phemister, are not available. I will return to this issue in more substance later.

4. The affidavit of Samuel Bridgeford annexes a number of things. In particular, an email to and from, the Applicant's counsel Mr Mahendra, in which the Respondent seeks the Applicant's consent to vacate the hearing date. Mr Mahendra indicated that consent would not be forthcoming.

5. The Applicant maintains that position and opposes the application to vacate the hearing date.

Procedural History

6. The procedural history of this matter is not especially complex.

7. An application for unfair dismissal was filed by the Applicant on 18 October 2024. In the application, the Applicant names 3 employees of the Respondent as having told him certain things, or as having done certain things in connection with his employment and in connection with his allegation of unfair dismissal. Two of those people named in the application are Mr Bryne and Mr Phemister.

8. The first conciliation and directions listing was vacated by consent. The matter was then listed for conciliation and directions on 13 November 2024. The matter was adjourned for further conciliation on 22 January 2025.

9. That further conciliation date was vacated and relisted. It occurred on 17 February 2025 and the matter was then adjourned to 4 March 2025 for further conciliation and directions.

10. On 4 March 2025 the parties took a hearing date, being 12 and 13 May 2025, and directions were made with respect to the filing and serving of evidence.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://www.caselaw.nsw.gov.au/decision/196a87ab223929784fd58a8d)

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