Attorney General for New South Wales v Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited

The Attorney General for New South Wales appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against orders made by the primary judge concerning the scope of powers of an inquiry established under the *Casino Control Act 1992* (NSW). The central dispute revolved around whether the inquiry, by virtue of being conferred the powers of a commissioner under the *Royal Commissions Act 1923* (NSW), could compel testimony or the production of documents despite claims of legal professional privilege.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether section 143A of the *Casino Control Act 1992* operated to abrogate legal professional privilege, and consequently, whether a witness summoned to appear before the inquiry was entitled to claim such privilege. This involved interpreting the extent to which the *Casino Control Act 1992* incorporated the powers and authorities of the *Royal Commissions Act 1923*, particularly section 17(1) of the latter, and whether this incorporation had the effect of overriding established common law principles of privilege.

The Court applied the principle of legality, which dictates that legislation should be construed in a manner that upholds fundamental common law rights unless Parliament has clearly and unambiguously expressed an intention to abrogate them. The Court reasoned that the conferral of powers under the *Royal Commissions Act 1923* did not, in itself, demonstrate a clear legislative intention to abrogate legal professional privilege. Furthermore, the Court considered the meaning of "protection" afforded to a witness under section 11(3) of the *Royal Commissions Act 1923* and the permissible use of extrinsic materials in statutory interpretation.

The appeal was allowed with costs. The orders of the primary judge were set aside, and the Commercial List Summons was dismissed with costs.