The laws also prevented unions and others pooling their resources to exceed the expenditure cap,imposing jail terms of up to 10 years for"act[ing] in concert".
The High Court heard the challenge in early December and ruled unanimously on Tuesday that the laws breached the implied freedom of political communication in the Commonwealth Constitution. The court ordered the state of NSW to pay the unions'legal costs.
In a joint judgment,Chief Justice Susan Kiefel and Justices Virginia Bell and Patrick Keane said the state of NSW had not established that the new cap was necessary to"prevent the drowning out of[other] voices"during an election campaign,as the government had claimed.
In a separate judgment,Justice Stephen Gageler said third-party campaigners"must be left with a reasonable opportunity to present its case to voters"and it was"not self-evident,and it has not been shown,that the cap set in the amount of $500,000 leaves a third-party campaigner with a
reasonable opportunity to present its case"to voters.
The NSW Nurses and Midwives Association,Electrical Trades Union,NSW Teachers Federation,United Services Union and Health Services Union joined Unions NSW in bringing the case. The unions have been working on separate campaigns but can now pool resources and hold a joint campaign launch.
Mark Morey from Unions NSW said the"draconian laws ... effectively stopped public criticism of the Berejiklian government"and the result was"more than just a win for third-party campaigners,it’s a win for democracy".
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the government was"disappointed"with the decision and"unions will now have the ability to exercise free rein on spending their member's dues - without giving them a say - on wall-to-wall advertising during the NSW election campaign".