Title September 2000

Dean v Dean

Represented the successful appellant in an appeal to the Family Court of Australia arising from a property hearing before Rose J.

Kingshott v Draper

Represented a successful plaintiff in a civil action arising from the death of their elderly mother in a motor vehicle accident.

JD v Director of Public Prosecutions & Ors (2000) NSWSC 1092

Greg Walsh represented the plaintiff in respect of a decision not to award costs to the plaintiff consequent upon his being discharged in respect of charges of sexual assault involving his daughter. The Magistrate had held that it was not an appropriate matter in which to award costs. Hidden J held that the Magistrate had fallen into error and that it was a matter in which costs ought to have been awarded. Hidden J reviewed the circumstances in which it was appropriate to award costs pursuant to the provisions of the Justices Act 1902 as amended.

Littler v R (2000) 120 A Crim R 152

Greg Walsh appeared as Counsel in the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal on behalf of the applicant in respect of an appeal pursuant to s5F of the Criminal Appeal Act arising from the refusal of Maguire DCJ to stay an indictment in respect of historical sexual assault charges. The Court upheld the application and granted a permanent stay.

Legal Services Commissioner v Musgrave (2000) NNSWADT 124; Law Society of NSW v Musgrave (2000) NSWADT 125

When the proceedings taken by the Legal Services Commissioner came before the Tribunal for hearing on 26 October 1998, Mr Musgrave did not appear. The Tribunal noted that the practitioner had ‘disappeared’ from his place of residence at Coffs Harbour two days before 26 October 1998 and that the Tribunal had found in other proceedings (taken by the Law Society) against the legal practitioner that in the period of his disappearance from 24 October 1998 to 5 November 1998, he was suffering from a dissociative fugue and was not responsible for his actions in impersonating another Solicitor.

The Tribunal however in making its findings of professional misconduct in respect of complaints bought to the Tribunal by the Legal Services Commissioner, did not accept the solicitor’s conduct in respect of which those findings were made was affected by or explained by mental illness.

The Tribunal said at (24) it was “satisfied that on the balance of probabilities, the Solicitor did suffer a dissociative fugue in October, 1998, from the time of his disappearance until sometime about the time of his return to Coffs Harbour on 5 November 1998. This was an episode of illness of short duration.”

The Tribunal was satisfied that on the balance of probabilities that whilst these experiences may in part help to understand the Solicitor’s behaviour, they did not excuse his misconduct, although that misconduct no doubt heightens his distress and anxiety. The Tribunal found that prior to the onset of the dissociative fugue; the solicitor did not have a condition which relieved him of responsibility for his acts.

Hartnett & Ors v State of NSW (2000)

Greg Walsh represented 68 plaintiffs in a successful action against the State of New South Wales arising from their unlawful detention and imprisonment arising from raids conducted by Officers of the Department of Community Services and New South Wales Police. The individual plaintiffs were successful in obtaining verdicts against the defendants.