Under Australian Solicitors Conduct Rules r 27.2, the presumption is now in favour of a solicitor continuing to act even when they will be a material witness; the onus is on the party seeking restraint to show that continued acting would prejudice the administration of justice. However, where the solicitor's professional conduct is itself the subject of scrutiny or criticism in the proceedings, and the solicitor's acts or omissions are an integral part of the opposing party's complaint, the court will restrain the solicitor from acting. The 'quite exceptional' threshold from [name withheld] v [name withheld] continues to apply to the appointment of a party to the litigation as administrator pendente lite.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 17 later cases that cite this judgment.
1 of the 17 citing cases carry a classified treatment. How each court treated it is available to signed-in members.