The New South Wales government has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on legal fees to unsuccessfully defend constitutional challenges against protest laws that were expected to be struck down. Documents obtained by Guardian Australia via freedom of information legislation reveal that $117,455.50 of taxpayers' money was spent on a single challenge to the Public Assembly Restriction Declaration (Pard) laws, enacted after the Bondi beach terror attack and in place during a protest against Israeli President Isaac Herzog in February.
Court of Appeal strikes down Pard laws
The state's court of appeal struck down the Pard laws in April, finding they impermissibly burdened the implied constitutional right to freedom of political communication. The court awarded costs to the plaintiffs, three activist groups, with the total bill to the taxpayer set to rise once finalised. This marked the second time in six months that an anti-protest law passed by the Minns government was found unconstitutional. Earlier, the NSW Supreme Court struck down an older law giving police expanded powers to prevent protests near places of worship, costing the government almost $96,400 in barristers and solicitors fees.
Police legal costs in protest cases
Guardian Australia also obtained NSW police costs for opposing 'form 1' applications to authorise pro-Palestine protests on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House last year. In the first case, which police lost, the force spent more than $91,600 on external legal fees. Police spent almost $59,500 last October opposing a planned pro-Palestine march to the Sydney Opera House, before the court of appeal sided with police due to 'extreme' safety concerns. In total, the NSW government and police have spent at least $305,500 on cases against pro-Palestine groups heard in the state's highest courts, and $87,099.29 on cases they successfully contested.
Political and expert warnings
The Pard laws were rushed through parliament to give the police commissioner power to ban protests in a specific area after a suspected terrorist attack. Legal experts and civil liberties groups raised concerns, with Professor Anne Twomey, emerita in constitutional law at the University of Sydney, warning: 'History tells us that anti-protest laws rushed through parliament often have an unhappy ending in the courts.' Upper house Labor MP Anthony D'Adam had moved to redraft the bill, warning it could be unconstitutional, but Premier Chris Minns said in March 2025 the government believed the laws were 'constitutionally sound'.
Activist response and ongoing appeals
Josh Lees, organiser for the Palestine Action Group, a party to all five cases, said 'this huge waste of money shows the desperate lengths [the government] has been prepared to go to, in order to rip up our democratic rights.' A government spokesperson said Labor had 'acted to protect the community, maintain social cohesion and ensure people felt safe' after the Bondi attack, and noted that some challenges were successful, including the defence of a major events declaration during Herzog's visit, which cost $27,600. Activist groups have indicated they intend to appeal if necessary to see charges against protesters dropped.
