McDonald Law Firearms Reform Test Case Fund
Purpose of this campaign
We are raising funds to bring a properly prepared legal challenge to aspects of the NSW Government’s firearms reforms passed on 24 December 2025, as contained in the Terrorism and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025.
Why we are doing this?
Our focus is the rule of law.
The NSW Parliament has imposed sweeping changes affecting hundreds of thousands of ordinary, law-abiding licence holders and firearms dealers. These changes severely restrict access to firearms and, in many cases, will ruin businesses and livelihoods.
Laws of this magnitude must be fair, transparent, and capable of lawful administration. Where reforms reduce independent external review and expand the secrecy of government and the Commissioner of Police in decision-making, it becomes essential to test whether the scheme and its operation comply with State and Constitutional limits and the fundamental administrative law principles of natural justice and procedural fairness.
What we reject
Lawful firearms owners are being treated as though they were responsible for the Bondi attacks. We were not, and we never will be, responsible for Radical Islam.
Criminals and extremists do not follow laws. They find ways around them. More punitive regulation directed at the law-abiding community is not a solution.
These reforms risk scapegoating responsible licence holders for the acts of violent offenders. Government overreach is evident. They need to hear, clearly, that they do not speak for us and their power is not limitless.
What we are trying to achieve
The only effective way to push back is through an appropriate legal challenge since our leaders in the Minns and Albenese Government have woefully failed lawful and law abiding Firearms licence holders
This campaign exists to ensure the government and the Commissioner of Police remain subject to the law, that decisions are made lawfully, and that the law-abiding population are not treated like second class citizens.
We are seeking to hold the system to account, to limit overreach, and to restore balance, fairness, transparency, and independent oversight.
Our objective is to run a staged test case in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, with the capacity to progress to the High Court of Australia if a genuine constitutional question of the validity of the new law arises.
This is not about claiming a constitutional right to firearms. Australia does not have that. This challenge is about whether the State can actually implement these law reforms in a way that is jurisdictional, procedurally fair, and consistent with the constitutional and administrative law constraints that protect every person from arbitrary executive power and erosion of democratic freedoms and the separation of powers.
Funding milestones and estimated cost
Litigation of this complexity is expensive. A realistic end-to-end budget, from first instructions through to a High Court challenge, is in the order of $500,000 to $1,000,000.
All funds will be raised on an appropriate basis and deposited into an auditable trust account administered by McDonald Law and independently overseen and audited by Kendalls Behrens Accountants.
The figures are an estimate only.
Our legal costs depend on how the Government responds, the number of steps, and the amount of evidence required.
We should expect that the Government will dig a deep trench to fight any legal challenge.
They have OUR tax dollars to spend on mounting any defence and are a determined opponent with a bottomless pit of cash in the Treasury Managed Fund (TMF).
To keep this disciplined, we will set funding benchmarks where each milestone unlocks the next stage of work.
There are 4 Milestones in total - the first estimate is below - all milestones are published below, but are indicative only. It could change as there is no certainty in litigation.
It should be acknowledged that this milestone outline and the estimates do not constitute a Cost Disclosure Agreement, and these estimates do not bind McDonald Law.
Also, for total transparency, the funds are not technically classified as trust funds, but will be treated as such regardless.
It should also be acknowledged that litigation is not guaranteed, and progression to Milestones 2-4 will not commence until we can formally provide and state that there are reasonable prospects of success, as required before beginning any civil litigation; under the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules (UCPR)
Milestone 1: Foundation and Case Build
Estimate: $50,000 to $150,000
- McDonald Law formally instructed.
- Immediate legal research and advice on reasonable prospects and grounds.
- Engaging a litigation team and briefing Counsel and Kings Counsel.
- Evidence gathering plan, including affidavits, Document Discovery, Notices to Produce, Expert Reports etc.
Milestone 2: Supreme Court commencement and interlocutory proceedings.
Estimate: $250,000 to $500,000
- Includes drafting and filing NSW Supreme Court originating process, summons, supporting affidavits, and written submissions
- Directions hearings, procedural steps, interlocutory preparation and appearances, and case management.
- Ongoing Counsel involvement, briefing of King's Counsel where required.
- Issue of Notices to Produce, Subpoenas, Notices of Motion etc.
Milestone 3: Supreme Court hearing readiness and final determination
Estimate: $500,000 to $700,000
- Preparation of the brief of evidence.
- Detailed written submissions for the final hearing, including constitutional and administrative law issues.
- Conferences. Mediations etc.
- The Supreme Court hearing, including counsel fees, transcript requests, and other court-related expenses.
- Travel and Accommodation disbursements.
Milestone 4: Appeal pathway and High Court proceedings if warranted
Estimate: $700,000 to $1,000,000
- Written Advice on prospects and the appeal route, including preservation of constitutional questions
- Appeal preparation, including further written submissions etc.
- High Court application and, if accepted, full High Court preparation and hearing.
- Continuing engagement of Senior Junior Counsel and Kings Counsel on an ongoing basis through the appeal stages.
- Contingency for additional interlocutory disputes, Notices of Motions, and procedural steps that often arise during litigation.
- Travel and Accommodation expenses to the ACT during appearance in the High Court.
Estimated cost breakdown across the whole campaign
The following is a practical guide to where the money goes across an end-to-end challenge. It is indicative only.
Legal team fees: solicitors and counsel
Estimated range: $650,000 to $850,000
Includes McDonald Law professional legal fees, Counsel and King's Counsel briefing fees, preparation, conferences, pleadings, and hearing preparation.
Court and hearing expenses
Estimated range: $50,000 to $120,000
Filing fees, transcript, court books, copying, service, and related disbursements.
Evidence and Experts
Estimated range: $80,000 to $180,000
Expert reports (if required), document management support for large records, and evidence preparation costs.
Contingency reserve
Estimated range: $100,000 to $200,000
Unexpected procedural steps, urgent injunction work, and additional hearings.
Organizer
