Onakoya v The Sydney Children's Hospitals Network (No 2)

In the case of Onakoya v The Sydney Children's Hospitals Network (No 2), the appellant, Mr Onakoya, sought the disqualification of Judge Giles, who was presiding over a personal injury claim against the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network. The dispute centred around the allegation of apprehended bias against the judge due to his daughter's employment at the defendant hospital. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, with Justice Leeming delivering the judgment.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the judge’s daughter's employment at the defendant hospital constituted a circumstance that would lead a reasonable observer to apprehend bias in the judge. The court considered whether the relationship between the judge's daughter and the hospital was such that it might reasonably give rise to doubts about the judge’s impartiality. The appellant argued that the connection, albeit indirect, could potentially influence the judge’s decisions and therefore warranted his disqualification. The respondent, on the other hand, maintained that there was no real possibility of bias and that the judge could remain impartial in the proceedings.

The court assessed the nature of the relationship between the judge’s daughter and the hospital, noting that she was a paediatric registrar, a position that involved providing medical care rather than administrative or managerial roles. It was also highlighted that she had not been involved in any aspect of the litigation or the hospital's defence. Justice Leeming concluded that the relationship did not give rise to any real likelihood of bias that would justify the judge's disqualification. The court found that a reasonable observer, fully informed of the facts, would not apprehend that the judge might be biased against the appellant.

The final orders of the court were that the application for the disqualification of the judge was dismissed. The judge remained on the case, and the proceedings continued as scheduled.