Konstantinidis v Council of the Law Society of New South Wales

The appellant, Mr. Konstantinidis, appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a decision of the Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) concerning proceedings commenced by the Council of the Law Society of New South Wales. The core of the dispute involved whether NCAT had the jurisdiction to hear the proceedings, which were initiated by the Council more than six months after the Council had resolved that proceedings be commenced against Mr. Konstantinidis. A key question was whether a resolution by the Professional Conduct Committee of the Law Society, stating that Mr. Konstantinidis should be informed of certain matters, constituted a formal decision to commence proceedings for the purposes of the relevant legislation.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine two primary legal issues. Firstly, it had to ascertain whether NCAT possessed the jurisdiction to entertain the proceedings commenced by the Council of the Law Society, particularly in light of the timing of their commencement relative to the Council's decision. Secondly, the Court needed to consider whether the decision made by NCAT regarding its own jurisdiction was made "for the purposes" of the *Legal Profession Act 2004* (NSW). The Court also had to determine if the appeal was properly assigned to the Court of Appeal under clause 29 of Schedule 5 to the *Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013* (NSW).

The Court of Appeal reasoned that the resolution of the Professional Conduct Committee did not amount to a decision that proceedings be commenced. Instead, it was a preliminary step in the disciplinary process. The Court found that the proceedings before NCAT were not commenced within the statutory time limit prescribed by the *Legal Profession Act 2004* (NSW) and therefore NCAT lacked jurisdiction. The Court affirmed that the appeal was properly before it.

Consequently, leave to appeal was granted, and the time for filing the Notice of Appeal was extended. However, the appeal itself was dismissed, and Mr. Konstantinidis was ordered to pay the respondent's costs.