ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR THE STATE OF NEW SOUTH WALES v RADIO 2UE SYDNEY PTY LTD [1996] NSWCA 28

ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR THE STATE OF NEW SOUTH WALES v RADIO 2UE SYDNEY PTY LTD

SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES — COURT OF APPEAL

REGISTRAR Jupp 19 August 1996

[1996] NSWCA 28

Registrar Jupp. Today there have been two notices of motion which have been argued together seeking to set aside subpoenas issued to the proper officer, Radio 2UE and Fordham Communications Pty Ltd.

Written submissions were prepared by Mr Rares and were handed up today. They go through several different arguments.

The first issue is whether the subpoenas or the documents being sought under the subpoenas are relevant.

It has been claimed that they are relevant to the summons or the amended summons and, in particular, par 11A of the amended summons. In my opinion they are relevant.

The documents being sought go to establish that John Laws, the second opponent, was a widely known host of a radio talk-back show and that he was an influential commentator. In respect of the subpoena to 2UE there has been a concession that paragraph 1, which requires copies of invoices relating to advertising charges for promotions, advertisements and endorsements on the John Law's program in the week of the alleged contempt, may be too broad, having regard to an affidavit which was filed in court today and sworn today by Harold Dutton.

I propose to strike out paragraph 1 of that subpoena without prejudice to the Attorney General issuing a fresh subpoena which rephrases the request for those particular documents.

In respect of the other paragraphs in that subpoena, even though it has been argued that they may be oppressive, or that they are too wide, they do not appear to me to be either, and with sufficient time I cannot see why the subpoenaed parties cannot produce those documents or explain why they cannot produce those documents. They certainly seem to be seeking relevant documents to me.