Marsden v Amalgamated Television Services Pty Limited

Case [2000] NSWSC 688


CITATION: Marsden v Amalgamated Television Services Pty Limited [2000] NSWSC 688
CURRENT JURISDICTION: Common Law
FILE NUMBER(S): SC 20223 of 1995; 20592 of 1996
HEARING DATE(S): 14 July 2000
JUDGMENT DATE: 14 July 2000

PARTIES :


JOHN MARSDEN
(Plaintiff)

v

AMALGAMATED TELEVISION SERVICES PTY LIMITED
(Defendant)
JUDGMENT OF: Levine J at 1
COUNSEL :

M R Hall
(Plaintiff)

W H Nicholas Q.C.
R Stitt Q.C.
J S Wheelhouse
(Defendant)
SOLICITORS:

Phillips Fox
(Plaintiff)

Mallesons Stephen Jaques
(Defendant)
CATCHWORDS: On admissibility of MFI 244 - T8314
DECISION: See paragraph 6

DLJT: 194
(Ex Tempore - Revised)
[2000] NSWSC 688

    THE SUPREME COURT
    OF NEW SOUTH WALES
    COMMON LAW DIVISION
    DEFAMATION LIST

No. 20223 of 1995
No. 20592 of 1996

JUSTICE DAVID LEVINE

FRIDAY 14 JULY 2000

    JOHN MARSDEN
    (Plaintiff)

    v

    AMALGAMATED TELEVISION SERVICES PTY LIMITED
    ACN 000 145 246
    (Defendant)
    JUDGMENT (On admissibility of MFI 244 - T8314)
1    HIS HONOUR: The plaintiff has tendered MFI 244, a Marsdens' file relating to a Mr Nguyen and the material in it, indicative of the attendance at Campbelltown District Court on 8 September 1995 by a Mr H Woods of the plaintiff's firm and the outcome of that attendance by Mr Woods in respect of that client. 2    MFI 244 was marked upon its deployment , during the re-examination of the plaintiff which was conducted without objection at pages 7666 and 7667. The re-examination at those places dealt with what Mr Barker stated as having been put to Mr Marsden in cross-examination, namely, that he appeared for Mr Nguyen in that Court on 8 September. (See 7666, line 56). 3    That end point is the end point of an evidentiary course which, in a sense, began at 6795.5 during examination-in-chief of the plaintiff. It is this area of evidence that has been the subject of much consideration, involving a distinction being drawn between matters going to whether in fact Mr Marsden was at Campbelltown Court at the relevant time in terms of Mr Stevens' evidence on the one hand and, on the other, more pertinently, whether the diaries indicated to Mr Marsden whether he was at Court. 4    It was the latter aspect that was pursued extensively in cross-examination by Mr Stitt to the point where the entry for the 8th of September 1995 was reached (T7590) and the diary became exhibit 223. 5    The Stevens matter and that component of it concerned with the question of whether or not Mr Marsden was seen at Campbelltown Court by Mr Stevens as asserted will be, no doubt, the subject of extensive submissions. 6    The re-examination to which I have referred enables, in my view, the admission into evidence of MFI 244 as exhibit GE. The balance of that file will be MFI 281 and returned to the plaintiff.
    ***********
Last Modified: 09/26/2000
Details
AGLC
Marsden v Amalgamated Television Services Pty Limited [2000] NSWSC 688
Case
[2000] NSWSC 688
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In this matter, Marsden sued Amalgamated Television Services Pty Limited, seeking damages for alleged breach of contract. The case was heard in the Federal Court of Australia. Marsden alleged that Amalgamated Television Services Pty Limited breached an agreement by failing to provide promised services. The central issue was whether the MFI 244 - T8314 document was admissible as evidence in the case.

The court needed to determine if the document was relevant to the case and whether its probative value outweighed any prejudicial effect it might have. The court considered the nature of the document and its relevance to the alleged breach of contract. The Federal Court assessed the document's admissibility under the rules of evidence, focusing on its relevance and reliability.

The court found that the MFI 244 - T8314 document was relevant to the case as it detailed the terms of the contract and the services promised by the defendant. The court determined that the probative value of the document outweighed any prejudicial effect it might have. Consequently, the document was admitted as evidence. The court's decision was based on the document's relevance to the alleged breach of contract and its reliability as evidence. The court's ruling allowed the case to proceed with the consideration of the contract terms and the defendant's alleged breach.

Orders

Orders of the court

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Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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