Pack v The Queen

The Director of Prosecutions applied for special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia against a decision of the Court of Criminal Appeal. The dispute concerned the applicant, Mr Pack, who had been involved in a seafood retailing business with Mr Godward. Mr Pack was to purchase seafood from the fish market and supply it to the retail outlet, Carrara Seafoods, which was owned by a company directed by Mr Godward and his wife. An arrangement was made for Mr Pack to buy a half share in the business, and pending finalisation, he was entitled to a salary.

The legal issues before the High Court involved the interpretation of evidence and the application of legal principles in relation to alleged misappropriation. Specifically, the court was required to consider the nature of the evidence provided by Mr Godward and another witness, Harper, and how this evidence related to the applicant's alleged misconduct. The complainant, Mr Godward, had agreed that there had been overstocking and that the onus was on Mr Pack to sell excess seafood, and that Mr Pack had accounted for this. However, Mr Godward terminated the arrangement in mid-April 1987, not due to any belief of misappropriation, and did not make a statement to the police until July, after Mr Pack had sued him for salary.

The High Court considered the complainant's evidence regarding when he first believed he was short of income. Mr Godward stated that this realisation occurred immediately after they parted company and when he began to examine his bank statements. The court was to determine whether the evidence, when properly understood, supported the findings of the lower courts regarding the applicant's alleged misappropriation of funds or goods. The proceedings were at the stage of an application for special leave to appeal, indicating that the substantive appeal had not yet been heard.