Livers v Legal Services Commissioner [2020] NSWCA 317

Court of Appeal Supreme Court New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Livers v Legal Services Commissioner [2020] NSWCA 317 Hearing dates: 10 July 2020 Decision date: 10 December 2020 Before: Ward CJ in Eq at [1]; White JA at [2]; McCallum JA at [3]. Decision: 1. Set aside the decision of the Civil and Administrative Tribunal made 27 November 2019. 2. Dismiss the application by the Legal Services Commissioner for disciplinary findings and protective orders against the applicant. 3. Legal Services Commissioner to pay the applicant's costs of the appeal. Catchwords: OCCUPATIONS — Legal practitioners — Misconduct and discipline — where solicitor alleged to have deliberately misled statutory authority including by fraudulently altering a document in order to obtain a grant of funding for legal representation of a client — absence of any direct evidence that solicitor altered the document — whether circumstantial evidence capable of supporting allegations Legislation Cited: Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013 (NSW), s 4, Sch 5 cl 29(2)(b) Legal Profession Act 2004 (NSW), s 497 Supreme Court Act 1970 (NSW), s 75A Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW), ss 59A, 60, 66, 67 Workers Compensation Amendment (Existing Claims) Regulation 2014 (NSW) Cases Cited: Bradshaw v McEwans Pty Ltd (1951) 217 ALR 1 Brassaud v Chubb Fire Safety Ltd [2014] NSWWCC 202 Carr v Law Society of New South Wales [2020] NSWCA 276 Chamberlain v The Queen (No 2) (1984) 153 CLR 521; [1984] HCA 7 Collet v Flying Solo Properties Pty Limited [2014] NSWWCC 388 Flying Solo Properties Pty Ltd t/as Artee Signs v Collet [2015] NSWWCCPD 14 Forder v Great Western Railway Co (1905) 2 KB 532 Legal Services Commission v Livers (No 2) [2018] NSWCATOD 152 Legal Services Commissioner v Livers [2017] NSWCATOD 117 Legal Services Commissioner v Livers [2019] NSWCATOD 180 Leon Nikolaidis v Legal Services Commissioner [2007] NSWCA 130 Livers v Legal Services Commissioner [2018] NSWCA 319 Neat Holdings Pty Ltd v Karajan Holdings Pty Ltd (1992) 110 ALR 449; [1992] HCA 66 Re Hodgekiss (1959) 62 SR (NSW) 340 Re Mayes and the Legal Practitioners Act [1974] 1 NSWLR 19 Royal Victorian Aero Club v Commonwealth (1954) 92 CLR 236; [1954] HCA 59 Sachin Sharma v Insurance Australia Ltd trading as NRMA Insurance [2017] NSWCA 307 Tangsilsat v Council of the Law Society of New South Wales [2019] NSWCA 144 Taylor v Council of the Law Society of New South Wales [2020] NSWCA 273 Transport Commission (Tas) v Neale Edwards Pty Ltd (1954) 92 CLR 214; [1954] HCA 21 Trustees of the Property of Cummins v Cummins (2006) 227 CLR 278; [2006] HCA 6 Vella v Penrith City Council [2014] NSWWCC 363 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Peter James Livers (Appellant) Legal Services Commissioner (Respondent) Representation: Counsel: S Prince SC, E Olivier (Appellant) T Wong SC, B Cameron (Respondent)