R v Macdonald; R v Maitland (No 10 – verdict) [2022] NSWSC 1765

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Macdonald; R v Maitland (No 10 – verdict) [2022] NSWSC 1765 Hearing dates: 7-9, 12, 14-15, 19-20, 21, 27-28 September 2022 1, 4-7, 10-13, 17, 20, 25 October 2022, 7 November 2022 and 9 November 2022 Date of orders: 20 December 2022 Decision date: 20 December 2022 Jurisdiction: Common Law - Criminal Before: Dhanji J Decision: Ian Michael Macdonald is found guilty of counts 1 and 3 of wilful misconduct in public office. A conviction is to be entered accordingly. John William Maitland is found not guilty of counts 2 and 4 of accessory before the fact to Mr Macdonald's offences in counts 1 and 3 respectively. He is to be discharged on the indictment. Catchwords: CRIME – trial – judge alone – wilful misconduct in public office – reasons for verdict – re-trial – grant of consent to apply for exploration licence – grant of exploration licence – circumstantial case – Labor Party – impending retirement – Noble House meeting – successful pre-selection – issue of friendship – motivation – coal allocation guidelines – Prime Restaurant meeting – Strangers' Dining Room meeting – Nippon Club meeting – signing at the Catalina Restaurant – failure to seek advice from relevant bodies – challenging financial environment – consciousness of guilt evidence – improper purpose – driving force – misconduct established – verdict of guilty CRIME – trial – judge alone – accessory before the fact to wilful misconduct in public office – mining industry – direct allocation of a commercially valuable resource sought – whether the accused intended the minister to misconduct himself in granting the exploration licence – issue of friendship – benefits of training mine – long standing commitment to health and safety – "too good to be honest" – knowledge of probity issues – strategy allegedly devised at Prime Restaurant – motives – accused's state of mind – obligations as a director – lobbying – verdict of not guilty – acquittal Legislation Cited: Coal Industry Act 2001 (NSW) Coal Mine Health and Safety Act 2002 (NSW) Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW), ss 132, 133 Evidence Act 1995 (NSW), s 69(2) Independent Commission Against Corruption Act 1988 (NSW), s 87 Mining Act 1992 (NSW), s 13(4) Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (NSW) Cases Cited: Edwards v The Queen (1993) 178 CLR 193; [1993] HCA 63 Fox v Percy (2003) 214 CLR 118; [2003] HCA 22 Hofer v The Queen (2021) 95 ALJR 937; [2021] HCA 36 M v The Queen (1994) 181 CLR 487; [1994] HCA 63 Maitland v R; Macdonald v R (2019) 99 NSWLR 376; [2019] NSWCCA 32 Orreal v The Queen (2021) 96 ALJR 78; [2021] HCA 44 R v Janceski (2005) 64 NSWLR 10; [2005] NSWCCA 281 R v Macdonald; R v Maitland (No 2) [2022] NSWSC 1208 R v Macdonald; R v Maitland (No 8) [2022] NSWSC 1421 Stephens v The Queen (2022) 96 ALJR 871; [2022] HCA 31 Weiss v The Queen (2005) 224 CLR 300; [2005] HCA 81 Texts Cited: New South Wales Government Gazette, No 101, 10 August 2005, at 4302. New South Wales Government Gazette, No 182, 14 December 2007, at 9633 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Rex (Crown) Ian Michael Macdonald (Accused) John William Maitland (Accused) Representation: Counsel: P Hogan (Crown) R Rajalingam (Macdonald)