Former Auburn deputy mayor Salim Mehajer has been banned from launching civil proceedings in any court in NSW until further notice, after he was officially labelled a vexatious litigant.
In a decision foreshadowed last week, Justice Geoff Lindsay today imposed vexatious litigant orders on Mehajer and stayed his latest multimillion-dollar lawsuit against former business associates.
Mehajer had tried to sue 17 defendants for $52 million over the fallout of a development project in Lidcombe which left him bankrupt.
The decision means the Western Sydney developer, or anyone working on his behalf, would need another court order to start any new civil proceedings.
Justice Lindsay wrote in a lengthy judgement published on May 27 that Mehajer had brought a series of cases in recent years which were either vexatious or had "harassed' and annoyed his opponents.
Mehajer, 35, argued the orders should only relate to the defendants in this case "instead of a broad order where I'm restricted entirely".
"It just restricts me entirely if I was to make any future application. And it just creates a great burden on me," he told the NSW Supreme Court.
"I think it's an aberration."
Justice Lindsay was unmoved and made the orders as he had intended.
Lawyers for the defendants asked for another order permanently banning Mehajer from restarting the lawsuit unless he filed a new statement of claim within eight weeks.
The bemused judge said that wouldn't be necessary, saying: "the whole proceedings are to be stayed."
"It was my intention that the stay proposed ... would really bring the proceedings to and end unless they are somehow reinvigorated."
Mehajer was beamed into court from Cooma jail, where is he serving prison time for perverting the course of justice.
He has appealed against the sentence.
Mehajer has previously called on high-powered lawyers in his legal battles but represented himself today.
The current proceedings were a lawsuit against SC Lowy Primary Investments and 16 other defendants, claiming their conduct led to his bankruptcy.
His lawsuit stemmed from the Skypoint Towers residential project in Lidcombe.
Mehajer was previously the sole shareholder of the project's former parent companies.
He is no longer associated with Skypoint.
The ex-developer blamed the defendants for conduct in 2016 which he alleged rendered him unable to pay back creditors, who later petitioned for him to be declared bankrupt in 2018.
He made various claims for damages, including that the defendants' actions caused him "nervous shock".
SC Lowry was the lender through which construction of Skypoint was funded, while another defendants also lent or advanced funds for the project.
Their lawyers pointed to 10 other failed civil cases brought by Mehajer in various courts — some of which related to Skypoint — in support of their motion.
Justice Lindsay wrote in his judgement the proceedings "advanced serious allegations" against the defendants which had also been made in earlier cases.
"Those allegations have been ventilated at length in earlier proceedings and have been either abandoned by Mehajer or made the subject of findings adverse to him," he said.
Justice Lindsay also found Mehajer was ignoring or "trying to circumvent" a previous Federal Court judgement in relation to his bankruptcy.
Mehajer was also ordered to pay court costs in the case.
