Marshall v Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (No 2)

[2026] VSC 432

Supreme Court of Victoria

Built by Barristers,
For Australian Law.

1. Judicial Review
1. Decisions of Independent Broad
1. based Anti
1. corruption Commission to commence investigation and subsequently to expand the scope of the investigation

Under s 60(2) of the IBAC Act, the question whether 'reasonable grounds' exist for a suspicion of corrupt conduct is assessed by reference to whether the information available at the time of the decision was sufficient to induce that suspicion in a reasonable person; the fact that an investigation ultimately does not substantiate the suspected conduct does not retrospectively negate the existence of reasonable grounds at the time the investigation was commenced.
Under the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (Cth), lawfully intercepted information may be used by IBAC for the purpose of deciding whether to commence a new investigation under s 60(1) of the IBAC Act — a 'permitted purpose' is not confined to use in connection with an already-existing investigation, having regard to s 68(ec) and the definition of 'permitted purpose' in s 5(1)(f).
The Johns v ASC principle limiting use of coercively obtained information to the statutory purpose for which it was obtained does not prevent IBAC from including such information in a special report transmitted to Parliament under ss 162 and 164 of the IBAC Act, where the report addresses the outcome of an investigation, even if it also serves IBAC's education and prevention functions — those functions are purposes of the Act, not extraneous to it.