Goodwin v Commissioner of Police (No 2)

In *Goodwin v Commissioner of Police (No 2)*, the appellant sought to amend the orders of the Court of Appeal, which had previously dismissed an appeal. The dispute concerned the interpretation of the Court of Appeal's earlier judgment and whether it necessitated remittal of the matter to the original trial judge for reconsideration. The application was heard by McColl and Basten JJA and Sackville AJA.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the phrase "reconsideration" in its prior judgment implied that the matter should be remitted to the original trial judge, or if it permitted the Court of Appeal itself to undertake the reconsideration. A related issue was the application of the slip rule, specifically Rule 36.17 of the *Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005* (NSW), to correct any alleged errors in the Court's orders.

The Court of Appeal reasoned that the term "reconsideration" did not inherently mandate remittal to the original trial judge. Instead, it indicated that the Court of Appeal itself was to undertake the reconsideration of the matter. The Court further held that the slip rule was not applicable as there was no demonstrable error or omission in the original orders that required correction. The Court noted that the parties had been afforded an opportunity to make submissions on the form of the orders.

The Amended Notice of Motion was dismissed, with no order as to costs.