New South Wales Crime Commission v Cresnar

The case of New South Wales Crime Commission v Cresnar was heard by the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute centred around the application of the Criminal Assets Recovery Act 1990 (NSW). The New South Wales Crime Commission sought to recover assets that it claimed were derived from criminal conduct. Cresnar, the respondent, contested the claim, arguing that the assets in question were legitimately obtained. The court had to determine whether the Commission could establish, on the balance of probabilities, that the assets were derived from criminal activity. The primary legal issue was whether the Commission had sufficient evidence to meet the threshold required by the Act to prove that the assets were indeed derived from criminal conduct.

The court examined the evidence presented by the Commission and considered the principles established in previous case law. It was established that the Commission must demonstrate, through admissible evidence, that the property was derived from criminal activity. The court emphasised that the burden of proof was on the Commission to show, on the balance of probabilities, that the assets were indeed derived from criminal conduct. The evidence needed to be reliable and capable of supporting a conclusion that the property was derived from such activity. The court found that the Commission had not provided sufficient evidence to meet the required threshold, as it was not satisfied that the balance of probabilities had been met.

In light of the findings, the court ruled in favour of Cresnar, dismissing the application by the Commission to recover the contested assets. The court held that the Commission had failed to discharge the onus of proving that the assets were derived from criminal activity. Consequently, the Commission's application was dismissed, and the assets remained with Cresnar. The court's decision underscored the importance of the Commission meeting the evidentiary standards set out in the Criminal Assets Recovery Act 1990 (NSW). The ruling reinforced the principle that asset recovery proceedings must be grounded in reliable and sufficient evidence to meet the legal requirements.