Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions v The Country Care Group Pty Ltd (Ruling No 5) [2020] FCA 1825

Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions v The Country Care Group Pty Ltd (Ruling No 5) [2020] FCA 1825

The defence/exception in s 7(3)(b)(i) of the Surveillance Devices Act was not made out, as there were viable means to protect lawful interests short of covert recording; however, the evidence was admitted under s 138 of the Evidence Act as its probative value and public interest in prosecution outweighed the undesirability of admitting evidence obtained illegally.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
27 November 2020
Procedural Posture
Federal Crime Proceedings / Evidentiary Ruling
Outcome
Evidence admitted; objection to admissibility dismissed
Legal Topics
['admissibility of Illegally Obtained Evidence' 'surveillance Devices Act' 'cartel Conduct' 'discretion Under Evidence Act']
['evidence Law' 'criminal Law' 'competition Law'] ['admissibility of Illegally Obtained Evidence' 'surveillance Devices Act' 'cartel Conduct' 'discretion Under Evidence Act']

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Procedural Posture

Federal Crime Proceedings / Evidentiary Ruling

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether s 7(3)(b)(i) exception to Surveillance Devices Act 2007 (NSW) applies to a covert recording' 'Whether the recording is admissible under s 138 of the Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) despite contravention']

Ratio Decidendi

The defence/exception in s 7(3)(b)(i) of the Surveillance Devices Act was not made out, as there were viable means to protect lawful interests short of covert recording; however, the evidence was admitted under s 138 of the Evidence Act as its probative value and public interest in prosecution outweighed the undesirability of admitting evidence obtained illegally.

Court Disposition

Evidence admitted; objection to admissibility dismissed

Orders

  • ['The defence under s 7(3)(b)(i) of Surveillance Devices Act 2007 (NSW) not made out.' 'Recording of private conversation was a contravention of s 7(1)(b).' 'Evidence admitted pursuant to s 138 of Evidence Act 1995 (Cth).']