R v Macdonald; R v Edward Obeid; R v Moses Obeid (No 3)

In the case before the High Court, the respondents, who were brothers, were charged with various offences relating to corruptly obtaining a water licence. The applicants sought to have certain documentary evidence and inferences from witness testimony excluded. The High Court was required to determine the admissibility of draft documents that pertained to the acquisition of property and the inferences that could be drawn from a water licence enquiry. The court needed to assess whether the draft documents were admissible in the circumstances and whether a witness could provide evidence on the provenance and purpose of the water licence enquiry.

The court held that the draft documents were not admissible as they were not intended to be finalised records of the property acquisition and did not accurately reflect the parties' intentions. The court found that the drafts were not sufficiently reliable to be admitted as evidence. Regarding the water licence enquiry, the court determined that the witness could not provide evidence about the provenance and purpose of the enquiry as it was based on speculation and hearsay. The court held that the evidence was inadmissible as it did not meet the standards of reliability and relevance required by the law.

The High Court dismissed the appeals and held that the trial judge was correct in excluding the documentary evidence and the inferences drawn from the witness testimony. The court found that the evidence was not reliable and did not meet the necessary standards for admissibility. The respondents' convictions were upheld, and the appeals were dismissed.

The final orders of the court were that the appeals be dismissed, and the convictions of the respondents be upheld. The court found that the trial judge had correctly excluded the documentary evidence and the inferences from the witness testimony, and that the convictions were based on reliable and relevant evidence. The respondents' convictions were therefore affirmed, and the appeals were dismissed.