The Court held that a Local Court has power to set aside a subpoena even where s 227(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW) has not been complied with, provided procedural fairness is accorded; non-compliance with s 227(2) is not jurisdictionally fatal. However, on the facts, procedural fairness was denied where the Local Court proceeded to determine the substantive dispute about subpoenas over the objection of a solicitor who lacked familiarity with the matter, in circumstances where the parties had agreed to directions for the dispute to be heard on a later date. The Court emphasised that sending an unfamiliar solicitor does not automatically give rise to a denial of procedural fairness, and that the conclusion turned on the particular circumstances including the anterior agreement between the lawyers.
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