Australian Petroleum Pty Ltd v Parnell Transport Industries Pty Ltd & Ors [1998] FCA 1580

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

EVIDENCE Ð documentary evidence Ð business records Ð exception to hearsay Ð effect provisions creating time limit for objections on admissibility of evidence Ð whether Pt 4.6 Div 1 of Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) requires Court not to admit evidence for twenty-one days Evidence Act 1995 (Cth), ss 26, 47-51,55,56,59,63,64,67,69,70-75,135,166,167,168,169,190 Evidence Act 1905 (Cth), ss 7A-7D Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) Corporations Law, s 1274(4C) Federal Court Rules, O 32 r 4(1) Myers v DPP [1965] AC 1001, considered Potts v Miller (1940) 64 CLR 282, considered Commissioner of Taxation v Karageorge (1996) 22 ACSR 199, distinguished Telstra Corp v Australis Media Holdings (NSW Supreme Court, 18 March 1997, McLelland CJ in Equity, unreported), considered

aUSTRALIAN PETROLEUM PTY LTD v PARNELL TRANSPORT INDUSTRIES PTY LTD and JOHN WHITFIELD SETH PARNELL and GREG PATTEN and PARNELL MOGAS PTY LTD and J & J PARNELL NOMINEES PTY LTD

SG 36 of 1996

MANSFIELD J

ADELAIDE

20 NOVEMBER 1998

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

SOUTH AUSTRALIA DISTRICT REGISTRY SG 36 of 1996

BETWEEN: AUSTRALIAN PETROLEUM PTY LTD

Applicant

AND: PARNELL TRANSPORT INDUSTRIES PTY LTD

First Respondent

JOHN WHITFIELD SETH PARNELL

Second Respondent

GREG PATTEN

Third Respondent

PARNELL MOGAS PTY LTD

Fourth Respondent

J & J PARNELL NOMINEES PTY LTD

Fifth Respondent

JUDGE: MANSFIELD J

DATE: 20 NOVEMBER 1998

PLACE: ADELAIDE

REASONS FOR DECISION

These reasons concern a ruling made as to admissibility of certain documents tendered by the applicant (Ampol) under s 69 of the Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) (Òthe ActÓ) in the course of the trial. The documents fall into two categories: a) documents produced from the records of the National Australia Bank Ltd (Òthe BankÓ) in the nature of internal memoranda purporting to record information provided to the Bank by, or on behalf of, the first, second, third and fifth respondents (Òthe