New South Wales Crime Commission v Walshe

The matter before the Court involved the New South Wales Crime Commission, which sought to recover proceeds of crime under the Criminal Assets Recovery Act 1990 (NSW) against a respondent, Mr Walshe. The Court was required to determine whether the Commission had established a prima facie case that the property in question was subject to a restraining order, and if ancillary orders should be made. The application was heard ex parte, without the respondent present.

The legal issues that the Court needed to address included whether the Commission had demonstrated a sufficient case that the property in question was the proceeds of crime and whether the Court had the necessary jurisdiction to make the ancillary orders sought. The Court also needed to consider whether the ex parte nature of the application was justified, and if the orders were necessary and proportionate.

The Court found that the Commission had established a prima facie case that the property was proceeds of crime, and that the ex parte nature of the application was justified due to the urgency and the risk of dissipation of assets. The Court was satisfied that the ancillary orders were necessary and proportionate to prevent the respondent from dealing with the property in a manner that would frustrate the application. Accordingly, the Court made the restraining order and ancillary orders as sought by the Commission.

The Court ordered that a restraining order be made in relation to the property, and that ancillary orders be made to prevent the respondent from dealing with the property in a certain way. The orders were to remain in effect until the final determination of the application or until further order of the Court.