Neil Cameron Chalmers v Gang Liang

[2013] HCASL 17

NEIL CAMERON CHALMERS

v

GANG LIANG & ANOR

[2013] HCASL 17
M59/2012

1. The applicant was convicted of the murder of Xiao Ling Liang before the Supreme Court of Victoria.  The deceased's father, Gang Liang, and her step-mother, Ting-Tai Zhu, applied to the trial judge for orders directing the applicant to pay each of them compensation[1].

   [1]Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic), s 85B.

2. The trial judge awarded compensation to Mr Liang in the amount of $120,000 and to Ms Zhu in the amount of $60,000.  The Court of Appeal of Victoria (Maxwell P, Redlich JA and Kyrou AJA) dismissed an appeal against the making of the awards.

3. The applicant applies for special leave to appeal.  The respondents have filed submitting appearances. 

4. The applicant complains that the trial judge failed properly to assess the burden that the awards would have on him and on his prospects of rehabilitation.  The same contention was rejected by the Court of Appeal.  Their Honours extracted a passage from the primary judge's reasons in which consideration of the effect of the awards on the applicant at the time of his release was addressed[2].  The Court of Appeal considered that the primary judge had not acted on a wrong principle nor arrived at a result that was not reasonably open[3].  Nothing in the applicant's summary of argument calls into question the correctness of the Court of Appeal's conclusion.  If special leave to appeal were granted the appeal would have no prospect of success.

   [2]Chalmers v Liang [2011] VSCA 439 at [21].

   [3]Chalmers v Liang [2011] VSCA 439 at [22].

5. The application is dismissed.

6. Pursuant to r 41.11.1 we direct the Registrar to draw up, sign and seal an order dismissing the application.

J.D. Heydon
26 February 2013 V.M. Bell