Sunland Group Limited v Gold Coast City Council

Sunland Group Limited brought an application before the Federal Court of Australia to determine whether the Gold Coast City Council had waived legal professional privilege over certain documents that were sought in the context of a broader dispute between the parties. The applicants sought the production of documents in an unredacted form on the basis that the Council had engaged in conduct that gave rise to an implied waiver of privilege over the redacted text.

The court was required to decide whether the Council had indeed waived legal professional privilege in relation to the documents in question. This involved a consideration of the principles relating to implied waiver of legal professional privilege, and whether such a waiver had arisen on the specific facts of the case. The court needed to assess whether the conduct of the Council in disclosing certain information to third parties, including Cardno Town Planners, constituted a waiver of privilege over the entire document or just the disclosed parts.

The court found that the Council had waived legal professional privilege over the redacted parts of the documents. The key factor in this determination was the Council's communication with Cardno Town Planners, where it disclosed information that was protected by privilege. The court held that by disclosing privileged information, the Council had impliedly waived privilege over the entire document. The court also noted that the directors of Sunland had relied on the due diligence report, which included the redacted information, in approving the acquisition.

The court ordered the Council to submit proposed orders within seven days to give effect to the reasons published in relation to the interlocutory application. The costs of and incidental to the interlocutory application were reserved for later determination, with the parties required to file submissions as to costs within 14 days. The determination of the costs of and incidental to the application was to be made on the papers unless a party indicated a wish to be heard orally on the issue of costs.