Khan v The Queen

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF NEW ZEALAND

CA61/2013
[2013] NZCA 548

BETWEEN	RAZDAN KHAN Applicant
AND	THE QUEEN Respondent

Court:

Harrison, French and Miller JJ

Counsel:

Applicant in person
A R van Echten for Respondent

Judgment:

(On the papers)

8 November 2013 at 11 am

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

The application for special leave to appeal is dismissed.

____________________________________________________________________

REASONS OF THE COURT

(Given by Harrison J)

Razdan Khan was convicted following a trial in the District Court at Auckland on one charge of criminal harassment under the Harassment Act 1997 and two representative charges of posting indecent articles under the Postal Services Act 1998. On appeal to the High Court Courtney J quashed his conviction on the charge of criminal harassment but dismissed his appeal against the other two convictions.[1] In a subsequent decision Courtney J declined to grant Mr Khan leave to appeal to this Court.[2]
[1]Khan v Police [2012] NZHC 2884. Courtney J remitted the criminal harassment charge back to the District Court for a fresh hearing.
[2]Khan v Police HC Auckland CRI-2012-404-306, 13 December 2012.
Mr Khan now applies for special leave to appeal to this Court.[3] An application for special leave requires (a) a question of law; (b) a question which ought to be submitted to this Court by reason of its general or public importance or for some other reason; and (c) this Court must be of the opinion that leave ought to be granted.
[3]Summary Proceedings Act 1957, s 144(3).
On 14 August 2013 Randerson J directed that Mr Khan’s application for special leave should be determined on the papers and directed him to file any submissions additional to those set out in his original notice of application filed on 1 February 2013 (some 29 days out of time) by 28 August 2013. Mr Khan has not responded.
The grounds set out in Mr Khan’s application are discursive, abusive and fail to identify a question of law, let alone one which is arguable or ought to be submitted to this Court. The threshold is accordingly not met.
Mr Khan’s application for special leave to appeal is dismissed.

Solicitors:
Crown Law Office, Wellington for Respondent

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Razdan Khan was convicted in the Auckland District Court of criminal harassment and two charges of posting indecent articles. The convictions were upheld by the High Court, except for the criminal harassment charge, which was quashed. Khan then sought special leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal of New Zealand, which was dismissed. The grounds for his appeal were found to be inadequate and did not meet the necessary threshold.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether Khan's application for special leave to appeal met the statutory requirements. Khan's grounds for appeal were required to include a question of law, a matter of general or public importance, or some other reason justifying the appeal. Additionally, the Court needed to be persuaded that leave should be granted. The Court found that Khan's grounds were discursive and abusive, and did not identify any arguable question of law, let alone one of sufficient importance to warrant an appeal.

In dismissing Khan's application, the Court noted that the grounds were not only poorly articulated but also failed to meet the basic requirements for special leave. The Court of Appeal considered the application on the papers and concluded that Khan had not demonstrated any arguable legal issue that warranted further consideration. As a result, the application for special leave was dismissed.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established