Reekie v Attorney-General (on behalf of the Department of Corrections) and Gentry

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF NEW ZEALAND
CA132/2009
[2010] NZCA 39
BETWEENNICHOLAS PAUL ALFRED REEKIE

Applicant

ANDTHE ATTORNEY-GENERAL (ON BEHALF OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS)

First Respondent
ANDMATTHEW GENTRY

Second Respondent

Court:William Young P, Chambers and Ellen France JJ
Counsel:Applicant in person

F J Sinclair for First Respondent
C L Garvey for Second Respondent

Judgment:26 February 2010 at 12 noon

(on the papers)

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

The application for recall of the judgment delivered by this Court on 15 December 2009 is dismissed.
____________________________________________________________________
REASONS OF THE COURT
(Given by William Young P)
[1] We are dealing with Mr Reekie’s application for recall on the papers as permitted by r 51(6) of the Court of Appeal (Civil) Rules 2005.
[2] It is sufficient for us to say that:
(a)The appeal was lodged in this Court out of time and an extension of time was required. The applicant was put on notice that an extension of time might be required in the submissions of the first respondent of 25 June 2009.
(b)That there was a reasonable explanation for the delay did not, of itself, entitle the applicant to an extension, (see [9] of the earlier judgment).
(c)The claims based on alleged assault brought against Dr Gentry and the Attorney-General were untenable for the reasons given in [6], [7], [8], [10] and [11] of the earlier judgment and we see no reason to resile from the conclusions reached.
(d)We saw the proposed appeal in relation to compensation under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 as insufficiently meritorious to warrant an extension of time; this for the reasons set out in [13] of the judgment.
(e)The applicant’s many complaints about his treatment by the Department of Corrections are not material to the conclusions we reached and it is not our role, in the present context, to sort them out.
(f)The applicant’s contention that the judgment was wrong and his desire to re-argue the case do not provide an appropriate basis for the exercise of the recall jurisdiction, see Horowhenua County v Nash (No 2).[1]
[1]Horowhenua County v Nash (No 2) [1968] NZLR 632.

[3] Accordingly the application for recall of the judgment is dismissed.
Solicitors:
Crown Law Office, Wellington for First Respondent
Whaley & Garnett, Auckland for Second Respondent

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Reekie v Attorney-General (on behalf of the Department of Corrections) and Gentry involved the applicant, Nicholas Paul Alfred Reekie, who sought a recall of the judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal of New Zealand on 15 December 2009. The first respondent was the Attorney-General on behalf of the Department of Corrections, and the second respondent was Matthew Gentry. The case was heard on the papers as permitted by rule 51(6) of the Court of Appeal (Civil) Rules 2005, and the appeal was lodged out of time. The legal issues before the court included whether the applicant had a reasonable explanation for the delay in lodging the appeal, whether the claims against Dr Gentry and the Attorney-General were tenable, and whether the proposed appeal in relation to compensation under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 was sufficiently meritorious to warrant an extension of time.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the application for recall of the judgment. The court found that the applicant's reasonable explanation for the delay in lodging the appeal did not, of itself, entitle him to an extension of time. The claims against Dr Gentry and the Attorney-General were found to be untenable for the reasons given in the earlier judgment, and the court saw no reason to resile from the conclusions reached. The proposed appeal in relation to compensation under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 was found to be insufficiently meritorious to warrant an extension of time. The applicant's many complaints about his treatment by the Department of Corrections were not material to the conclusions reached, and the court did not see it as its role to sort them out in the present context. The applicant's contention that the judgment was wrong and his desire to re-argue the case did not provide an appropriate basis for the exercise of the recall jurisdiction.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the application for recall of the judgment, and no further orders were made. The applicant's appeal was dismissed, and the earlier judgment of the Court of Appeal remained in force.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established