Chandrasekaran v Western Sydney Local Health District (No 4)

In *Chandrasekaran v Western Sydney Local Health District (No 4)*, the applicant sought leave from the Court of Appeal of New South Wales to issue subpoenas and notices to produce to the respondents. The purpose of these documents was to obtain certain emails and related metadata, which the applicant alleged were necessary to identify third parties who had hacked into the applicant's email accounts. This application followed previous unsuccessful attempts by the applicant to obtain similar documents.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the proposed subpoenas and notices to produce, sought for the purpose of identifying non-parties in a pending appeal, would serve a legitimate forensic purpose. The Court was required to consider the scope and application of rules governing the issuance of such documents, particularly when directed at third parties and in the context of an appeal.

White JA dismissed the applicant's application, finding that the subpoenas and notices to produce were not for a legitimate forensic purpose. The Court's reasoning implicitly involved an assessment of whether the requested documents were necessary for the proper conduct of the appeal or for the identification of parties involved in the alleged hacking, and whether the proposed use of the information was appropriate within the procedural framework. The applicant's Notice of Motion filed on 23 September 2023 was dismissed, with the costs of that motion to be the respondents’ costs in the applicant’s earlier Further Amended Notice of Motion.