Full Court Minute Books

Case S129/2020

Zhang v. Commissioner of Police & Ors

Case No.

S129/2020

Case Information

Catchwords

Constitutional law – Validity of legislation – Validity of warrants – Where plaintiff under investigation for alleged foreign interference offences, contrary to Criminal Code (Cth) sub-ss 92.3(1), (2) – Where plaintiff formerly employed part-time in office of member of New South Wales Parliament – Where magistrate, purporting to exercise power in s 3E of Crimes Act 1914 (Cth), issued search warrant authorising AFP officers to enter and search plaintiff’s residential premises – Where magistrate also purported to make order under s 3LA, requiring plaintiff to provide information or assistance to officers enabling them to access, copy, or convert data held on computers or devices found in execution of warrant – Where searches took place, and pursuant to s 3K, certain items removed for examination – Where magistrate purported to exercise s 3E power and issued warrant authorising search of warehouse premises from which plaintiff and his wife conducted business – Where searches took place, material seized pursuant to s 3F, and electronic devices removed for examination pursuant to s 3K – Where registrar purported to exercise s 3E power and issued warrant authorising AFP officers to enter and search premises within NSW Parliament House – Where searches took place, and data copied to USB thumb drives pursuant to s 3F – Where magistrate made s 3LA order requiring plaintiff to provide information and assistance to police that would allow them to access data held in or accessible from phones moved to another place for examination after search of residential premises – Whether either or both of sub-ss 92.3(1), (2) invalid for impermissibly burdening implied freedom of political communication – Whether some or all of warrants are wholly or partly invalid on basis that they misstate substance of s 92.3(2) of Criminal Code, that they fail to state offences to which they relate with sufficient precision, or that either or both of sub-ss 92.3(1), (2) are invalid – If some or all of warrants are wholly or partly invalid, whether one or both of s 3LA orders are invalid.

Documents

03/08/2020 Application for Constitutional Writs

11/11/2020 Special Case Stated

12/11/2020 Order referring matter to the Full Court

18/11/2020 Written submissions (Plaintiff)

09/12/2020 Written submissions (First defendant and Attorney-General of the Commonwealth, intervening)

23/12/2020 Written submissions (Attorney-General for the State of New South Wales intervening)

23/12/2020 Written submissions (Attorney-General for the State of South Australia, intervening)

05/02/2021 Reply

07/04/2021 Hearing (Full Court, Canberra) (Audio-visual recording)

07/04/2021 Outline of oral argument (Plaintiff)

07/04/2021 Outline of oral argument (First defendant and Attorney-General of the Commonwealth, intervening)

07/04/2021 Outline of oral argument (Attorney-General for the State of New South Wales intervening)

07/04/2021 Outline of oral argument (Attorney-General for the South Australia intervening)

08/04/2021 Hearing (Full Court, Canberra) (Audio-visual recording)

12/05/2021 Judgment (Judgment summary)