MRB v The King

MRB
v
THE KING
[2024] HCASL 233
B28/2024

The applicant requires an extension of time within which to seek special leave to appeal from a judgment of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Queensland (Dalton JA and Burns J; Boddice JA dissenting) which dismissed an appeal against conviction in the Supreme Court of Queensland.
The application concerns the terms of the direction based upon Liberato v The Queen (1985) 159 CLR 507. Although the direction by the trial judge did not follow the usual terms of the direction (see De Silva v The Queen (2019) 268 CLR 57 at 64 [12]) the application has insufficient prospects of success to warrant the grant of special leave to appeal. Accordingly, it would be futile to grant an extension of time.
Special leave to appeal is refused.
Gageler CJ
Gordon J
Edelman J
Steward J
Gleeson J
Jagot J
Beech-Jones J
5 September 2024

CaseChat Overview and Summary

MRB has applied to the High Court for an extension of time to seek special leave to appeal from a judgment of the Supreme Court of Appeal of Queensland, which dismissed an appeal against his conviction in the Supreme Court of Queensland. The applicant argues that the direction given by the trial judge did not conform to the usual terms established in Liberato v The Queen, and contends that this irregularity warrants further examination. The Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Queensland dismissed the appeal, with a majority of two to one, and the applicant now seeks to challenge this decision by applying for special leave to appeal.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the applicant's application for an extension of time to seek special leave to appeal had sufficient prospects of success. This involved assessing the extent to which the irregularities in the direction given by the trial judge could impact the fairness of the proceedings and the reliability of the conviction. The court was required to determine whether these irregularities were significant enough to warrant further judicial review.

The High Court found that although the direction given by the trial judge did not strictly adhere to the terms outlined in Liberato v The Queen, the application did not have sufficient prospects of success to justify an extension of time to seek special leave to appeal. The court held that the irregularities did not fundamentally undermine the fairness of the proceedings or the reliability of the conviction to a degree that would merit further review. Consequently, the application was deemed futile, and the High Court refused special leave to appeal.

The final order of the High Court was that special leave to appeal was refused, and no extension of time was granted. The majority of the justices, Gageler CJ, Gordon J, Edelman J, Steward J, Gleeson J, Jago J, and Beech-Jones J, concurred in this decision.

Continue reading MRB v The King

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