(b) a misstatement of an amount or total; and (c) a misdescription of a debt or other matter ‌ The defect must also cause substantial injustice. In Topfelt Pty Ltd v State Bank of NSW Ltd [1993] FCA 589 Lockhart J said: According to its ordinary usage a 'defect' means a lack or absence of something necessary or essential for completeness; a shortcoming or deficiency; an imperfection. In LSI Australia v LSI Holdings; LSI Australia v LSI Consulting [2007] NSWSC 1406, when talking about the debt in a statutory demand, Austin J said: If the demand is so vague or ambiguous that it fails to identify, to a reasonable person in the shoes of a director of the debtor company, the general nature of the debt to a sufficient degree that the director can assess whether there is a genuine dispute as to the existence or amount of the debt, then there is a lack of something necessary for completeness, and therefore a defect in the demand. Whether this defect will cause substantial injustice will turn on the facts of each matter. Again, to be sure that the demand is not set aside for this reason, you must sufficiently particularise the debt so that the director of the debtor knows (or is deemed to know) what it relates to.
It Must Be Signed The signing section is important because the demand must be dated and signed, with the person signing to print their name, and state in what capacity they are signing.
Again, there are various cases which discuss what a person is, whether that person has capacity to sign on behalf of the creditor, and more.
Tip – to save any difficulties, a solicitor for the creditor is an agent of the creditor, and as such it has been deemed that they can sign on behalf of the creditor.
In Collins Bros Stationers Pty Ltd v Zebra Graphics Pty Ltd (1985) 10 ACLR 267 Gobbo J said: It would seem to me that the document, where it is signed by a person describing himself as the solicitor of the creditor, carries with it an assertion of agency. It would not seem necessary to have explicit evidence of authority which is, as it were, claimed and prima facie made out on the face of the document. Otherwise, a sole director of the company can sign with authority of the creditor company Alternatively, if there are more than one director, a director with a minute of a resolution giving him/her authority to sign on behalf of the creditor company. An omission of a signature has not been found not to be a defect which would cause substantial injustice.
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