Commissioner of Police (NSW) v Ritson (No. 2)

The matter of *Commissioner of Police (NSW) v Ritson (No. 2)* concerned an application for the recusal of Justice Cameron of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The application was brought by the Commissioner of Police, who sought to have Justice Cameron disqualify himself from presiding over proceedings in the case.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether there was a reasonable apprehension of bias on the part of Justice Cameron, such that his impartiality in the proceedings could be questioned. This required an examination of the conduct and statements made by the judge in the context of the ongoing litigation.

Justice Cameron, in his judgment, considered the principles governing applications for recusal, which are rooted in the fundamental requirement for a fair trial and public confidence in the administration of justice. He applied the test of whether a fair-minded lay observer, having considered the facts, would apprehend that the judge might not bring an impartial mind to the issues the judge was to decide. After reviewing the circumstances, Justice Cameron concluded that there was no reasonable apprehension of bias and therefore dismissed the application for his own recusal.