In Davies v Department of Transport and Main Roads [2024] QDC 41, the District Court of Queensland, sitting at Southport, delivered its judgment on 6 March 2024 in an appeal involving Glyndwr Thornsby Davies, the appellant, against the Department of Transport and Main Roads, the respondent. The appeal centered on Davies' conviction for using a mobile phone while driving, an offence under section 300(1) of the Transport Operations (Road Use Management – Road Rules) Regulation 2009 (Qld). Davies' primary argument was that the Department of Transport, being allegedly a trading corporation, could not impose road rules regulations on him without his contractual consent. Judge Porter KC rejected this line of reasoning, determining it was without merit for several reasons, notably that the Department of Transport is not a corporation but a state executive entity and does not enact or enforce road rules. However, the appeal was upheld on a different ground. The process by which Davies was asked to present his case before the prosecution opened was deemed improper, infringing on the fair conduct of a criminal trial, notably the principle of non-self-incrimination. Consequently, the court ordered a retrial before a different magistrate.
From the TLDR Caselaw Archive