Redman v Verticon Group Limited [2009] NSWDC 37

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Redman v Verticon Group Limited [2009] NSWDC 37

HEARING DATE(S): 9 - 13 February 2009 EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE : 12 February 2009

JURISDICTION: Civil

JUDGMENT OF: Goldring DCJ

DECISION: 1. Application to qualify witness as an expert refused. 2. Application to exclude evidence refused.

CATCHWORDS: EVIDENCE - Expert evidence - qualification of expert - need for statement of qualification - need for independence of expert - apprehended bias of expert

LEGISLATION CITED: Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005

CASES CITED: United Rural Enterprises Pty Ltd v Lopmand Pty Ltd and Ors [2003] NSWSC 870 (19 September 2003)

PARTIES: Jason Redman (Plaintiff) Verticon Group Limited (Defendant)

FILE NUMBER(S): 5716 of 2007

COUNSEL: J Berwick (Plaintiff) T Saunders (Defendant)

SOLICITORS: Craddock Murray Neumann (Plaintiff) Deacons (Defendant)

JUDGMENT

1 HIS HONOUR: I have before me two matters. One is an application by Mr Saunders for the defendant to qualify the witness Mr Chris Hipwell as an expert. The second matter is an application by the plaintiff to exclude all of Mr Hipwell's affidavit evidence, and I am not sure whether this is conditional on my granting the previous application or whether it is an application which stands on its own. I suspect the latter.

2 To take the second point first, yesterday I considered a number of detailed objections which Mr Berwick, for the plaintiff, raised about parts of Mr Hipwell's affidavits. Some of those parts were clearly opinion and they were, in my view generally, opinion which would not have been admissible even if Mr Hipwell had been qualified as an expert, because they represent conclusions of law and other such matters.