Potier v District Court of New South Wales

The applicant, Potier, sought a writ of certiorari to quash his criminal convictions and a declaration that his criminal trial was a nullity. The basis for these applications was an alleged non-disclosure by the Crown of information relevant to the applicant's defence. The matter came before the Court of Appeal of New South Wales.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether certiorari was an appropriate remedy in the circumstances, considering the discretionary nature of the writ, and whether the alleged non-disclosure rendered the trial a nullity. The Court was also required to consider the relevance of alternative remedies, specifically the availability of full rights of appeal.

The Court reasoned that certiorari is a discretionary remedy and that its availability is influenced by the existence of alternative avenues for relief. In this instance, the applicant had full rights of appeal available to him, which the Court considered to be the appropriate mechanism for addressing any alleged errors or improprieties that occurred during the trial, including issues of non-disclosure. The Court concluded that the existence of these appeal rights rendered the application for certiorari inappropriate.

Consequently, the application for a writ of certiorari and a declaration that the trial was a nullity was dismissed with costs.