UNIFORM CIVIL PROCEDURE RULES 2005 - REG 52.6 Privilege of witness

UNIFORM CIVIL PROCEDURE RULES 2005 - REG 52.6

52.6 Privilege of witness

(cf SCR Part 58, rule 6)

(1) This rule applies if a claim by a witness to be exempt from giving any evidence on the ground specified in section 34(1)(b) of the Evidence on Commission Act 1995 is not supported or conceded as mentioned in section 34(2) of that Act.

(2) The witness may be required to give the evidence to which the claim relates--

(a) by the examiner, or

(b) if the examiner does not so require, by the Supreme Court on the application of the person who obtained the order under section 33 of the Evidence on Commission Act 1995 .

(3) An application referred to in subrule (2)(b) need not be served on any person unless the Supreme Court otherwise orders.

(4) The following provisions apply if the evidence is taken pursuant to such a requirement--

(a) the evidence must be recorded in a transcript (
"the disputed transcript" ) that is separate to the transcript in which the rest of the witness's evidence is recorded,

(b) the transcript of evidence that is sent to the principal registrar of the Supreme Court must be accompanied by a statement, signed by the examiner, setting out the claim and the ground on which it was made,

(c) on receipt of the statement, the principal registrar of the Supreme Court--

(i) must retain the disputed transcript, and

(ii) must send to the requesting court, together with the documents mentioned in rule 52.4, both the statement and a request to determine the claim,

(d) on receiving notice of the requesting court's determination of the claim, the principal registrar of the Supreme Court--

(i) if the claim is rejected, must send the disputed transcript to the requesting court, or

(ii) if the claim is upheld, must send the disputed transcript to the witness,

and, in either case, must cause notice of the determination to be given both to the witness and to the person who obtained the order under section 33 of the Evidence on Commission Act 1995 .