TP03/081
The Takeovers Panel announces that it has adopted the medium neutral citation system currently used by most Australian Federal, State and Territory courts and other tribunals in relation to its own decisions. The form of citation, to be used in referring to previous Panel decisions in applications, submissions and other communications to and from the Panel as well as in the Panel's own decisions, will be:
(name of company whose affairs are the subject of the proceeding) [year of the announcement by the Panel of its decision] ATP (sequential number of the decision).
Accordingly, the recent decision in Trysoft Corporation Limited will be referred to as:
Trysoft Corporation [2003] ATP 26.
Consistently with the guidelines produced by the Australian Institute of Judicial Administration, the paragraphs in the reasons for Panel decisions will continue to be separately numbered and parties and others writing to the Panel are requested to use the appropriate paragraph number as a " pinpoint". It will assist if the same use of "pinpoint" is adopted even if the relevant reasons for decision have been reported. For example to refer to paragraph 10 of the Panel reasons in the decision in Pinnacle 05:
Pinnacle VRB (No. 5) [2001] ATP 14; 39 ACSR 43; 19 ACLC 1154 at [10]
To assist practitioners and others wishing to use this system, a list of all Panel decisions since 1 March 2000 with their medium neutral citations has been added to the Panel's website.
Commenting on this development, the Director of the Takeovers Panel, George Durbridge, said: "The Takeovers Panel, from its reconstitution in 2000, has made all of its decisions freely available on its web site. Now that a significant body of panel decisions has developed, it has become apparent that an appropriate means of citation is required. To adopt medium neutral citation using the AIJA model was a logical response to this need."
The Panel has also decided, where possible, to assist practitioners and other users of Panel decisions by including catchwords and references to legislation, ASIC policy and class orders, Takeovers Panel guidance and Court and Panel decisions considered in the reasons at the beginning of its published reasons.
Mr Durbridge noted: "Decisions of the Takeovers Panel are now frequently referred to not only in documents to and by the Panel but also in academic and practitioner commentary on takeovers. Extensive research is clearly being undertaken by many people and basic research tools such as catchwords and legislation, policies and decisions referred to will assist users in locating relevant panel decisions."
As the Panel updates its website http://www.takeovers.gov.au, medium neutral citation information will be included both in the naming of each decision and also in cross-references to it from other decisions. Similarly, over time not only will catchwords and referred materials be included in new reasons for decision, but they will be added to the existing body of reasons.
A list of medium neutral citations of past Panel decisions can be found at:
George Durbridge,
Director, Takeovers Panel
Level 47 Nauru House,
80 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Ph: +61 3 9655 3553
george.durbridge@takeovers.gov.au