A liquidator appointed by Victoria’s Supreme Court has secured court approval to serve legal documents on an Australian citizen residing in the U.S. through direct personal service.

The Federal Court permitted the action under Rule 10.44 of the Federal Court Rules 2011, granting leave to serve a summons for examination on T.Y. Perry, the brother of a company director, in Florida. The case, Albarran, in the matter of Perennial Enterprise Pty Ltd (in liq) (Service Abroad) [2026] FCA 1407, establishes the first instance where an Australian court has approved such service on an Australian national abroad for corporate liquidation inquiries.

The Victorian Supreme Court had earlier named the liquidator and R. Lawrence as joint liquidators of Perennial Enterprise Pty Ltd on September 16, 2022, under section 472(1) of the Corporations Act 2001. Lawrence later resigned, leaving the liquidator as the sole applicant in the Federal Court proceedings.

The liquidator suspected T.Y. Perry-an Australian citizen-was the brother of S.Y. Perry, the company’s director. According to the plaintiff, Perry held unitholder status, had received funds from the company, and was involved in a related entity with dealings with the company. On 3 October 2025, Perry was served with documents in New South Wales proceedings at a Florida address, leading the plaintiff to believe he lived outside Australia.

The Federal Court determined that serving Perry in the U.S. met the requirements of section 596B(1)(b)(i) or (ii) of the Corporations Act, which allows examinations of individuals connected to a company’s financial matters.

• Ties to the company’s operations: Perry’s status as a unitholder and his financial dealings with the company fell within the liquidator’s investigative authority.
• Australian citizenship as a jurisdictional link: Despite living in the U.S., Perry’s nationality provided a sufficient connection to Australia’s legal framework, mitigating concerns over international legal relations.
• U.S. adherence to service agreements: The U.S. has not raised objections to Article 10 of the 1965 Hague Service Convention, which governs cross-border document delivery, facilitating the court’s decision.

The court emphasized that personal service in Florida would not interfere with international legal cooperation. To protect sensitive evidence, it ordered the liquidator’s September 4, 2026 submissions kept confidential under Rule 2.32(3) until further review. The supporting affidavit remained sealed under section 596C(2), except as directed by the court.

In a related development, the court referred materials from a superannuation proceeding to the Legal Professional Board of Tasmania and the Queensland Legal Services Commission on September 14, 2026. This referral aimed to determine whether further scrutiny of the liquidator’s legal team was necessary. Earlier that month, the court extended a deadline for filing a required deed under an ASIC instrument, acknowledging that the liquidator’s former solicitor had made unintentional errors.