Prabowo v Republic of Indonesia

The case of *Prabowo v Republic of Indonesia* concerned an application by the Republic of Indonesia to set aside a subpoena issued to the Commonwealth of Australia, requiring the production of documents relating to the Republic of Indonesia. The Republic of Indonesia sought to prevent the disclosure of these documents, arguing that they were protected by sovereign immunity. The application was heard by Gaudron and Gummow JJ of the High Court of Australia.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the subpoena, which sought documents from the Commonwealth of Australia in proceedings between the Republic of Indonesia and a third party, could be set aside on the grounds of sovereign immunity. This required the Court to consider the scope of sovereign immunity in the context of a third-party subpoena and the extent to which the Commonwealth could be compelled to produce documents that might be subject to such immunity.

The High Court determined that the subpoena should be set aside. Their Honours reasoned that the Republic of Indonesia, as a foreign sovereign, was entitled to sovereign immunity from suit and from execution. While the subpoena was directed to the Commonwealth and not directly to the Republic of Indonesia, the documents sought were alleged to be the property of the Republic of Indonesia and were sought in circumstances where their production would interfere with the Republic's sovereign rights. The Court applied the principle that sovereign immunity extends to protect a foreign state from being compelled to produce documents that are its property, particularly when those documents are sought in proceedings to which it is not a party, and where their disclosure could prejudice its sovereign interests.

The High Court ordered that the subpoena issued to the Commonwealth of Australia be set aside.