Sheather v Director of Public Prosecutions

The Supreme Court of New South Wales, constituted by McCallum CJ, considered an application to dismiss an appeal for want of prosecution. The appellant, Sheather, had repeatedly failed to appear, leading to the Director of Public Prosecutions seeking the dismissal of the appeal.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the appeal should be dismissed due to the appellant's persistent failure to prosecute it, specifically by failing to appear. This required the Court to consider the principles governing the dismissal of appeals for want of prosecution, particularly in circumstances where the appellant's non-appearance was a recurring issue.

McCallum CJ applied the well-established principles for dismissing an appeal for want of prosecution, which require the court to balance the appellant's right to have their appeal heard against the need for the efficient administration of justice and the respondent's right to have the matter resolved. The repeated failures of the appellant to appear, despite opportunities to do so, demonstrated a lack of diligence in pursuing the appeal and an unwillingness to engage with the court process. Consequently, the Court found that the appeal had not been prosecuted with due diligence.

The appeal was accordingly dismissed for want of prosecution, and the orders that were the subject of the appeal were confirmed.