Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Managed Investments Limited (No 5)

The case of Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Managed Investments Limited (No 5) involved the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and Managed Investments Limited, along with other defendants, in a dispute concerning the stay of civil proceedings pending criminal proceedings. The case was heard by the Federal Court of Australia. The primary issue the court had to address was whether the civil proceedings should be stayed due to the existence of criminal proceedings in a foreign jurisdiction, particularly in light of the felony-tort rule and the privilege against self-incrimination.

The legal issues revolved around the application of the felony-tort rule and the privilege against self-incrimination in a foreign jurisdiction. The court needed to determine if the existence of criminal proceedings in a foreign jurisdiction could warrant a stay of the civil proceedings and whether the privilege against self-incrimination could limit the admissibility of evidence obtained in the foreign proceedings. The court examined the extent to which the principle of self-incrimination could be invoked to exclude evidence and the risk of incrimination in the foreign jurisdiction.

In its decision, the court dismissed the applications for a stay of the civil proceedings. The court found that the existence of criminal proceedings in a foreign jurisdiction did not necessarily warrant a stay of the civil proceedings, and the privilege against self-incrimination did not extend to limiting the admissibility of evidence obtained in the foreign jurisdiction. The court held that the risk of incrimination in the foreign jurisdiction was not sufficient to exclude the evidence from the civil proceedings. Consequently, the court ordered that the applications be dismissed, with the applicants to pay the costs of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Mr Hutchings and Ms Watts, to be assessed. The costs between the applicants and Mr King were reserved.