National Australia Bank v Sayed (No. 10) [2018] NSWSC 108

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: National Australia Bank v Sayed (No. 10) [2018] NSWSC 108 Hearing dates: 9 February 2018 Date of orders: 15 February 2018 Decision date: 15 February 2018 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Davies J Decision: (1) Dismiss the notice of motion filed 28 November 2017.

(2) The cross-claimant is to pay the cross-defendant's costs of the notice of motion.

(3) No further notices of motion are to be filed or served without my leave or without the leave of a judge of the Court. Catchwords: PROFESSIONS AND TRADES – lawyers – duties and liabilities – availability of supervisory jurisdiction to restrain solicitors from acting – whether solicitors in a position of conflict – whether integrity of judicial process impaired – defendant alleged that solicitors for plaintiff had an improper interest in justifying their own conduct – solicitors might have indirect pecuniary interest in outcome of proceedings in that they might be exposed to a claim by the plaintiff for loss suffered by it if it is unsuccessful – no evidence from which to infer negligence or unlawful conduct – no risk that solicitors would breach the confidences of the defendant – plaintiff itself did not perceive any conflict of interest – no exceptional circumstances in which solicitors owed a duty of care to another party

PROCEDURE – judgments and orders – application to vary or set aside a judgment that client legal privilege had not been waived by solicitors for the plaintiff – Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) r 36.16(3) – no evidence of material change in circumstances or discovery of new material subsequent to the hearing of the original application – no evidence of subsequent waiver – diary notes kept by solicitor for the plaintiff were subject to client legal privilege – Evidence Act ss 117, 118