The Court refused leave under s 4 of the Felons (Civil Proceedings) Act 1981 (NSW) for a prisoner to proceed with a claim against the Commissioner of Corrective Services for the loss of legal documents during a prison transfer. Although Corrective Services had acknowledged loss of some personal property and paid compensation, the plaintiff failed to demonstrate a prima facie cause of action for money damages in respect of the legal documents, particularly where the police held a copy of the brief of evidence in archives and no evidence was adduced of any cost to obtain replacement copies. The Court noted the statement of claim disclosed no identifiable cause of action, though this may have been attributable to the plaintiff's difficulty in properly pleading one.
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