Reddy v R Tan v R [2013] NSWSC 907

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Reddy v R Tan v R [2013] NSWSC 907 Hearing dates: 7, 15, 22 March 2013 Decision date: 17 June 2013 Jurisdiction: Common Law - Criminal Before: Latham J Decision: Certificate under s2 of the Act granted to each of the applicants Catchwords: COSTS - Application for certificate for costs from Crown - Costs in Criminal Cases Act 1967, s 2 - whether applicants satisfied s 3(1)(b) to a civil standard - whether applicants unreasonably withheld police note from prosecuting authorities - prosecuting authorities includes the police - certificate granted Legislation Cited: Costs in Criminal Cases Act 1967 Cases Cited: Mordaunt v DPP & Anor. [2007] NSWCA 121 R v Lipton [2011] NSWCCA 247 R v Manley [2000] NSWCCA 196 Category: Costs Parties: Nathan Keith Reddy (Applicant) Anthony Tan (Applicant) Regina (Crown) Representation: Counsel J Hickleton (Reddy) G Brady (Tan) P Barrett (Crown) Solicitors Galloway Solicitors & Attorneys (Reddy) Nyman Gibson Stewart (Tan) Solicitor for Public Prosecutions (Crown) File Number(s): 2011/335974 (Reddy) 2010/318373 (Tan)

Judgment 1The applicants, Nathan Reddy and Anthony Tan, apply pursuant to s 2 of the Costs in Criminal Cases Act 1967 for a certificate in relation to a proposed trial of the former on the charge of murder of Edin Smajovic and the latter on the charge of accessory after the fact to that murder. 2The trial was fixed for 11 February 2013. The applicants were arraigned and a jury empanelled. After some delay owing to pre-trial publicity and the need to consider (by both the Crown and the applicants) the product of two subpoenas, the proceedings were no billed on 26 February and the applicants were discharged. 3Sections 2 and 3 of the Act relevantly provide :- 2. (1) The Court or Judge or Magistrate in any proceedings relating to any offence, whether punishable summarily or upon indictment, may: (a) where, after the commencement of a trial in the proceedings, a defendant is acquitted or discharged in relation to the offence concerned, or a direction is given by the Director of Public Prosecutions that no further proceedings be taken, .................................................................... grant to that defendant a certificate under this Act, specifying the matters referred to in section 3 and relating to those proceedings. (2) For the avoidance of doubt, a certificate may be granted in accordance with subsection (1) (a) following an acquittal or discharge of a defendant at any time during a trial, whether a hearing on the merits of the proceedings has occurred or not. 3. (1) A certificate granted under this Act shall specify that, in the opinion of the Court or Judge or Magistrate granting the certificate: (a) if the prosecution had, before the proceedings were instituted, been in possession of evidence of all the relevant facts, it would not have been reasonable to institute the proceedings, and (b) that any act or omission of the defendant that contributed, or might have contributed, to the institution or continuation of the proceedings was reasonable in the circumstances.