New South Wales Crime Commission v Carnese

The case of New South Wales Crime Commission versus Carnese was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The Crime Commission applied for an ex parte restraining order under the Criminal Assets Recovery Act 1990 (NSW) to prevent the defendant from disposing of or dealing with specified assets, including a property and a bank account, on the basis that they were proceeds of crime. The defendant, Carnese, sought to challenge the making of the order and to have it discharged.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the Crime Commission had satisfied the statutory criteria to justify the making of an ex parte restraining order under the Act. The court considered whether the commission had established that the property and bank account were likely to be proceeds of crime and that there was a risk of the defendant disposing of or dealing with those assets if the order was not made. The court also examined whether the order was necessary to ensure the effectiveness of any future confiscation order and whether it was just and equitable to make the order in all the circumstances.

The Supreme Court found that the Crime Commission had established the necessary criteria for the making of an ex parte restraining order. The evidence presented by the commission demonstrated that the property and bank account were likely to be proceeds of crime and that there was a real risk of the defendant disposing of or dealing with them. The court was satisfied that the order was necessary to ensure the effectiveness of any future confiscation order and that it was just and equitable to make the order in all the circumstances. The court therefore upheld the restraining order.

The final orders of the court were that the restraining order be and is made, and that it is to remain in force until further order of the court. The court also ordered that the defendant pay the Crime Commission's costs of and incidental to the application.