An appeal has been filed on behalf of Judge Salvatore Vasta following a ground-breaking decision which held him personally liable for false imprisonment of a man who appeared before him in a family law matter.
In August, Judge Vasta became the first Judge in Australian history to be successfully sued for a decision he made as a judge.
The suit arose from a decision of Vasta made on 6 December 2018, when he sentenced a self-represented man to a period of imprisonment of twelve (12) months.
Only six days later, Vasta J agreed to a stay of his own Order resulting in the man’s release, and it was reversed on appeal. But the man had suffered serious psychological damage from being imprisoned and later sued.
The case turned on the issue of judicial immunity and whether it was sufficiently wide to protect Judge Vasta from being held liable.
Justice Michael Wigney found that Judge Vasta could not rely on judicial immunity because he was an inferior court judge who acted without jurisdiction.
This matter could have a long way to run. There is a good chance this case could end up in the High Court, which could provide a binding decision on the scope of judicial immunity at common law in Australia.