Attorney General of New South Wales v Martin [2015] NSWSC 1372

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Attorney General of New South Wales v Martin [2015] NSWSC 1372 Hearing dates: 17 February 2015; 18 February 2015; 19 February 2015; final submissions: 17 June 2015; 7 July 2015 Decision date: 17 September 2015 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Simpson J Decision: (1) Pursuant to s 8(7)(a) of the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW), all of the proceedings in New South Wales already instituted by the defendant be stayed;

(2) Pursuant to s 8(7)(b) of the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008, the defendant be prohibited from instituting proceedings in New South Wales without leave of the Court. Catchwords: PROCEDURE - Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW), ss 8(1)(a) and (b) - whether defendant has "frequently instituted or conducted vexatious proceedings in Australia" - whether defendant's prior claims constitute "vexatious proceedings", s 6 - discretion to make orders - defendant instituted and conducted vexatious proceedings frequently and over considerable period of time - orders granted

PROCEDURE - "dual role" of Attorney General under s 8(4) Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW) whether Attorney General should be precluded from seeking orders from which the NSW government would benefit - role analogous to any litigant under s 8(4)(d) - role of Attorney General to prevent unwarranted disruption to justice system

EVIDENCE - admissibility - exclusion of evidence of judgments and convictions - Evidence Act 1995 (NSW), s 91 - whether judgments admissible as proof of facts in issue - Teoh v Hunters Hill Council (No 8) [2014] NSWCA 125 - Attorney General v Chan [2011] NSWSC 1315 - factual findings in judgment not capable of establishing existence of relevant facts for s 6 Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW) - decision maker must make independent judgment on nature of prior proceedings - s 91 antithetical to object of Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW) Legislation Cited: Evidence Act 1995 (NSW), s 91, 190, 192 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules (NSW) 13.4, 14.28, 36.15 Vexatious Proceedings Act 2008 (NSW), ss 4, 6, 8 Cases Cited: Anthony Gilbert Martin v Insurance Australia Ltd [2005] ACTCA 17 Anthony Gilbert Martin v NRMA Insurance Ltd [1998] ACTSC 237 Anthony Gilbert Martin, Sue Dolores Martin and Individual Homes Pty Ltd v Commonwealth Bank of Australia [1994] ACTSC 64 Attorney General in and for the State of NSW v Gargan [2010] NSWSC 1192 Attorney General in and for the State of NSW v Markisic [2014] NSWSC 1596 Attorney General in and for the State of NSW v Potier [2014] NSWSC 118 Attorney General of New South Wales v Anthony Gilbert Martin [2013] NSWSC 442 Attorney General of New South Wales v Croker [2010] NSWSC 942 Attorney General v Bar-Mordecai [2005] NSWSC 142 Attorney General v Chan [2011] NSWSC 1315 Attorney General v Wilson [2010] NSWSC 1008 Martin v Attorney General for the State of New South Wales [2014] NSWCA 189 Martin v Individual Homes Pty Ltd (In liq) [2001] FCA 91 Martin v Minister for Mineral and Forest Resources [2011] NSWLEC 1011 Martin v NSW Department of Industry and Investment [2009] NSWLEC 1447 Martin v NSW Minister for Mineral and Forest Resources [2010] NSWLEC 131 Martin v State of NSW (No 14) [2012] NSWCA 46 Martin v State of NSW (No 15) [2012] NSWCA 47 Martin v State of NSW (No 2) [2011] NSWLEC 108 Martin v State of NSW (No 9) [2011] NSWCA 286 Martin v State of NSW [2010] NSWLEC 247 Martin v State of NSW [2011] NSWCA 281 Martin v State of NSW [2011] NSWLEC 126 Martin v State of NSW [2011] NSWLEC 129 Martin v State of NSW [2011] NSWLEC 20 Martin v State of NSW [2015] NSWCA 141 Martin v State of NSW and Central West Scientific Pty Ltd [2011] NSWLEC 50 Re Martin's Application [2001] HCA 41; 180 ALR 453 Teoh v Hunters Hill Council (No 8) [2014] NSWCA 125 Viavattene v Attorney General (NSW) [2015] NSWCA 44 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Attorney General of New South Wales (Plaintiff) Anthony Gilbert Martin (Defendant) Representation: Counsel: V McWilliam (Plaintiff) In person (Defendant)