Markisic v State of New South Wales & Ors (No 2)

The case of Markisic v State of New South Wales & Ors (No 2) involved the applicant seeking to re-plead her defamation claims. The primary respondent was the State of New South Wales, and other respondents included the Minister for Communities and Justice and the Secretary, Department of Communities and Justice. The applicant sought to add further publications to those already approved by the Court of Appeal for leave to appeal defamation claims. The dispute centred on whether the proposed new imputations were tenable, whether the publications were protected by absolute privilege, and whether the proposed proceedings would be futile.

The legal issues that the court needed to address included the tenability of the new imputations, the applicability of absolute privilege to the publications, and the potential futility of the proposed proceedings. The court also needed to determine whether the publications were incidental to and necessary for judicial proceedings and whether they were protected by issue estoppel. Furthermore, the court had to consider whether the communications between officers of the State were necessary for the effective performance of official functions.

The court found that the proposed new imputations were untenable, and the publications were protected by absolute privilege. The court held that the proposed proceedings would be futile as the imputations were not tenable. Additionally, the court found that the publications were incidental to and necessary for judicial proceedings and protected by issue estoppel. Finally, the court determined that the communications between officers of the State were necessary for the effective performance of official functions. As a result, the court dismissed the application to re-plead.