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ACT lawyer’s salacious claims against Law Society on hold
A solicitor whose vendetta against the ACT Law Society has spanned dozens of proceedings and countless “scandalous” claims has been ordered to hand over $20,000 before he can move forward with yet another one.
Naomi Neilson
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Emmanuel Tam Ezekiel-Hart was ordered by the Federal Court to hand over security for costs in the sum of $20,000 before mid-November if he wants to move forward with an appeal against bankruptcy proceedings.
In coming to her decision, Justice Melissa Perry said the prospect of Ezekiel-Hart’s appeal succeeding is “low”, and there was no compelling public interest that would weigh against making the order.
“It follows, in my view, that the amount of security sought, namely $20,000, is reasonable compared to the costs likely to be incurred by the respondents,” Justice Perry determined late last week.
“It strikes a balance by ensuring that, in the event that the respondents successfully defend the appeal, a significant proportion of costs could be met in circumstances where it is highly unlikely a costs order against the appellant would otherwise be met, without requiring payment of a sum by way of security of costs which would be oppressive.”
Since 2009, Ezekiel-Hart has filed 37 proceedings against the ACT Law Society and made “multiple, serious and florid claims”, with most relating to “racial discrimination, defamation, abuse of power, fraud, and alleged breaches of [Ezekiel-Hart’s] human rights”.
In February, Justice Greg Curtin of the ACT Supreme Court declared Ezekiel-Hart to be a vexatious litigant and found he “lacks any insight, lacks any objectivity, and refuses to accept the finality of litigation”.
“Unless stopped, I anticipate the plaintiff will continue to attempt to air the same or much the same grievances again in the same (largely incomprehensible) manner as he has to date,” Justice Curtin said.
Last July, Ezekiel-Hart alleged the Law Society did not grant him a practising certificate due to his race and argued that it instead granted white lawyers found guilty of criminal or professional offences their practising certificates “without delay”.
At the time, Ezekiel-Hart submitted that “Black Africans are hated everywhere without just cause” and accused the ACT Supreme Court’s Justice David Mossop of enforcing powers to endorse racism.
In his affidavit rejecting the security for costs application, Ezekiel-Hart made a “large number of serious allegations” against the Law Society, including of “fraud, misleading various courts, and acts of perjury”.
“These allegations were in the nature of bare assertions and, as such, were scandalous and embarrassing,” Justice Perry said.
The case is Ezekiel-Hart v Reis FCA [2024] 1203.
Naomi Neilson
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
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