Marshall v Prescott

The appeal concerned the alleged misuse of confidential information by a solicitor, Mr Prescott, who had acted for multiple parties in a complex property development dispute. The appellant, Marshall, alleged that Mr Prescott had breached his duty of confidentiality by using information obtained during his retainer to act for Marshall, to the benefit of other clients in the same matter. The case was heard in the Court of Appeal of New South Wales.

The central legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the information Mr Prescott possessed was indeed confidential, and if so, whether its use by Mr Prescott constituted a breach of his equitable duty of confidentiality to Marshall. This involved determining whether the information had entered the public domain or was considered shared information between the various clients Mr Prescott represented in the underlying dispute, particularly given that Marshall himself lacked standing to bring a claim in that dispute. The construction of the terms of Mr Prescott's retainer with Marshall was also a relevant consideration.

The Court of Appeal found that the information in question was not confidential. This conclusion was based on the finding that the information was either already in the public domain or was shared information amongst the parties involved in the underlying dispute, including Mr Prescott's other clients. Consequently, Mr Prescott's use of the information did not breach any equitable duty owed to Marshall. The appeal was dismissed with costs.