R v White; Ex parte

The case of *R v White; Ex parte* concerned an application for a writ of prohibition brought by the applicant, White, against the respondent, the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration. The dispute arose from proceedings before the Commonwealth Court concerning an industrial dispute involving the applicant and the Australian Workers' Union.

The primary legal issue before the High Court was whether the Commonwealth Court had acted in excess of its jurisdiction in making a certain order. Specifically, the Court was required to determine whether the Commonwealth Court had the power to make an order for the payment of a sum of money as a penalty for a breach of an award, and whether such an order constituted a "conviction" for the purposes of s 73 of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth).

The High Court held that the Commonwealth Court had not acted in excess of its jurisdiction. Dixon C.J. and Kitto J. reasoned that the power to impose penalties for breaches of awards was an integral part of the arbitration system established by the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904 (Cth). They further held that an order for the payment of a penalty was not a "conviction" in the criminal sense, and therefore s 73 of the Judiciary Act did not apply to limit the appellate jurisdiction of the High Court in this instance. Taylor, Menzies and Windeyer JJ. concurred with this reasoning.

The application for a writ of prohibition was accordingly dismissed.