M v The Queen

This matter concerns an application for special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia. The applicant, M, sought to challenge a decision of the Court of Criminal Appeal of New South Wales. The Solicitor-General for New South Wales appeared for the respondent, The Queen.

The central legal issues before the High Court revolved around the interpretation and application of section 6 of the Criminal Appeal Act. Specifically, the applicant argued that the Court of Criminal Appeal had failed to properly consider significant evidence, that there were important points of principle concerning the direction Courts of Criminal Appeal should take, and that the test applied by the Court of Criminal Appeal was not consistent with established High Court authorities such as *Whitehorn*, *Morris*, and *Palmer*. The applicant contended that the Court of Criminal Appeal's approach, particularly in requiring evidence so destructive of the complainant's credibility as a trigger for action under section 6, was erroneous.

The applicant's submissions, as presented by Mr. Collins QC, focused on three broad grounds. Firstly, it was argued that, consistent with previous High Court decisions, there was a failure to deal with evidence of moment. Secondly, the applicant sought to establish an important point of principle regarding the application of section 6, drawing on the decision in *Carr* and suggesting a divergence of judicial opinion on its application. Thirdly, the applicant contended that the test applied by the Court of Criminal Appeal was fundamentally flawed, irrespective of any judicial differences of opinion, as it imposed a requirement not supported by the relevant High Court jurisprudence.