When a court grants leave under s 298(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW) to issue subpoenas for sexual assault counselling documents, the court must still exercise an independent discretion at the access stage, considering the s 299D criteria (substantial probative value, availability of other evidence, and the public interest balancing exercise), before granting the accused access to the documents produced. Compliance with s 299B(3) is a necessary but not sufficient condition for access. Principal Protected Confiders have standing to seek leave to appeal access orders under both s 5F(3AA) and s 5F(3) of the Criminal Appeal Act 1912 (NSW).
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