Western Australian Government Holdings Ltd & Ors v Southern Equities Corporation Ltd & Ors; The State of Western Australia v Southern Equities Corporation Ltd & Ors (P24-93

The parties involved in this High Court of Australia proceeding were the Western Australian Government Holdings Ltd, the State of Western Australia, and the State Energy Commission of Western Australia, as appellants, and Southern Equities Corporation Ltd and others, as respondents. The dispute concerned a claim to legal professional privilege, specifically in relation to an affidavit filed in the case. The appellants contended that the affidavit was not protected by legal professional privilege and that the Full Court's judgment had erred by confusing distinct categories of privilege.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the affidavit in question was properly protected by legal professional privilege. The appellants argued that the Full Court had erred by conflating legal professional privilege with other forms of privilege, particularly the concept of "own case" privilege. They asserted that legal professional privilege, a well-established doctrine, was distinct from "own case" privilege, which protects only evidence supporting one's own case and has been abrogated by statute in most Australian jurisdictions, though not in Western Australia.

The appellants' reasoning focused on the distinction between different types of privilege. They argued that the Full Court's judgment had incorrectly applied the concept of legal professional privilege, suggesting a tendency to confuse it with other, less robust forms of privilege. Specifically, they highlighted "own case" privilege as a separate and distinct concept, noting its limited scope and its abrogation in many jurisdictions. The appellants contended that no claim for "own case" privilege had been made in this instance, and that the affidavit's protection under legal professional privilege was therefore indefensible.