Tan v King (No 2) [2023] NSWSC 1616

Tan v King (No 2) [2023] NSWSC 1616

Order 4 made in the Victorian proceedings was an order restricting access to the court file in the registry under r 28.05 of the Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2015 (Vic), not a suppression order under the Open Courts Act 2013 (Vic). Its purpose and effect were to prevent non-parties from inspecting the court file, not to protect a party or its solicitors from producing documents in their possession in answer to a subpoena merely because copies were also on the court file. Madgwicks was therefore obliged to produce the documents.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
07 December 2023
Procedural Posture
Civil Procedure Subpoena to Produce in Equity Commercial List Proceedings / Notice of Motion Filed by the Plaintiffs Seeking an Order That the Subpoenaed Party Produce Documents the Subject of the Subpoena
Outcome
Subpoenaed party ordered to produce.
Legal Topics
['subpoena to Produce' 'court File Confidentiality' 'suppression Orders' 'access to Court Documents' 'harman Undertaking']
['civil Procedure' 'equity' 'commercial List'] ['subpoena to Produce' 'court File Confidentiality' 'suppression Orders' 'access to Court Documents' 'harman Undertaking']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Civil Procedure Subpoena to Produce in Equity Commercial List Proceedings / Notice of Motion Filed by the Plaintiffs Seeking an Order That the Subpoenaed Party Produce Documents the Subject of the Subpoena

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether the order made by Delany J in the Supreme Court of Victoria on 16 March 2021 prohibited Madgwicks Services Pty Ltd from producing the subpoenaed court documents in these proceedings.' 'Whether the Victorian order was a suppression order under the Open Courts Act 2013 (Vic) or an order restricting inspection of the court file under r 28.05 of the Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2015 (Vic).']

Ratio Decidendi

Order 4 made in the Victorian proceedings was an order restricting access to the court file in the registry under r 28.05 of the Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2015 (Vic), not a suppression order under the Open Courts Act 2013 (Vic). Its purpose and effect were to prevent non-parties from inspecting the court file, not to protect a party or its solicitors from producing documents in their possession in answer to a subpoena merely because copies were also on the court file. Madgwicks was therefore obliged to produce the documents.

Court Disposition

Subpoenaed party ordered to produce.

Orders

  • ['Madgwicks Services Pty Ltd is obliged to produce the documents sought by the subpoena.']