Alliance Craton Explorer Pty Ltd v Quasar Resources Pty Ltd

Alliance Craton Explorer Pty Ltd (Alliance) and Quasar Resources Pty Ltd (Quasar) were members of a mining exploration joint venture, with Quasar acting as the manager. Quasar, through Heathgate, sought legal advice concerning the negotiation of a native title mining agreement (NTMA), and subsequently entered into an NTMA that purportedly bound both joint venturers. Alliance alleges that Quasar was not authorised to enter into an NTMA on the terms negotiated by Quasar and seeks production of communications between Quasar, Heathgate, and their legal advisors in relation to the negotiation of the NTMA. Quasar and Heathgate claim legal professional privilege over these communications.

The court was required to determine whether Alliance was entitled to production of the documents in question, given the claims of legal professional privilege by Quasar and Heathgate. The court considered the principles of legal professional privilege, particularly in relation to the communication between the legal profession and their client, and the duties and liabilities of an agent to their principal. The court also examined the relationship between the parties and the nature of the dispute, including the terms of the joint venture agreement and the roles and responsibilities of each party.

The court found that the communications between Quasar, Heathgate, and their legal advisors were protected by legal professional privilege, except for certain documents created after 11 June 2009. The court held that Alliance was entitled to production of all but the last five documents in Schedule B to Quasar’s list of documents and to production of all but the last document in the Amended Schedule 2 to the Heathgate list of documents.

The court ordered that Quasar and Heathgate were not required to disclose to Alliance the documents brought into existence after 11 June 2009, being the last five documents in Schedule B to Quasar’s list and the last document in Schedule 2 to Heathgate’s list. Alliance was entitled to production of all other documents in question.