Kawicki v The Legal Services Commissioner

The appeal in *Kawicki v The Legal Services Commissioner* concerned allegations of professional misconduct or unsatisfactory professional misconduct against the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Mr Cowdery. The appellant, Ms Kawicki, alleged that advice provided by the DPP was misleading, and that the Legal Services Commissioner's decision, based on this advice, was vitiated by reviewable error. The matter came before the Court of Appeal of New South Wales, with Mason P, Tobias JA, and Foster AJA presiding.

The central legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the advice given by the DPP constituted a misrepresentation, rendering it misleading, and consequently, whether the Legal Services Commissioner's decision was infected by reviewable error. The court was required to assess the nature of the advice provided and its impact on the subsequent decision-making process.

The Court of Appeal ultimately dismissed the appeal. The reasoning of the court, though not detailed in the provided text, led to the conclusion that the DPP's advice was not misleading and that the Commissioner's decision was not affected by reviewable error. Consequently, the court ordered that the appellant pay Mr Cowdery's costs of the appeal and the first respondent's costs on a submitting appearance basis.