Fingleton v The Queen

Courts and judicial system – Magistrates – Judicial officers' immunities – Immunity conferred upon magistrates in the performance or exercise of an administrative function or power conferred under an Act – Appellant Chief Magistrate proposed to remove Co-ordinating Magistrate from that position – Whether immunity extends to a criminal charge against appellant of unlawful retaliation against a witness.

Criminal law – Unlawful retaliation against a witness – "Without reasonable cause" – Whether trial judge misdirected jury as to the meaning of "reasonable cause" in s 119B of the Criminal Code (Q) – Relevance of the meaning of the terms "detriment" and "retaliation" to an assessment of "without reasonable cause".

Constitutional law (Cth) – Federal judicial power – Appellate jurisdiction of the High Court – Criminal matter – Grounds of appeal – Point not taken at trial or before Court of Criminal Appeal – Whether new ground of appeal can be raised before the High Court – Whether following trial point waived or spent – Whether raising new ground deprives proceedings of the character of an "appeal" for purposes of s 73 of the Constitution.

Words and phrases – "appeal", "without reasonable cause", "detriment", "retaliation", "under an Act".

Magistrates Act 1991 (Q) – ss 10, 21A.

Criminal Code (Q) – ss 30, 119B, 620.

Constitution – s 73.