As he left court with his legal team on Friday afternoon, controversial surgeon William Mooney was served with a fresh medical negligence suit by a man wearing jeans and a beige windcheater who thrust a sheaf of papers into Mooney’s hand, saying “Mr Mooney, thanks.”

In 2012, the prominent ear, nose and throat surgeon settled a negligence case with a tabletop dancer who claimed the only consultation she’d had with Mooney before her surgery was in the early hours of the morning at the Melbourne strip club where she was working.

Earlier on Friday, the NSW Medical Council had been seeking leave to appeal a tribunal’s decision that the doctor had learnt from his mistakes and should be allowed to resume practicing under certain conditions.

In April 2022, Mooney was banned for a year after it was found that his substandard care resulted in the deaths of two patients, that he lied about a relationship with a third patient and that he provided a false medical certificate to cover up his failure to attend mandatory drug testing for cocaine.

In granting his reinstatement in March, the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) concluded it is “highly unlikely” that Mooney “will repeat any of the mistakes of the past”.

“In our view, Mr Mooney has proven that he can be trusted to practice in an honest and ethical manner and presents no risk to the safety of the public and their confidence in the profession,” the tribunal held.

However, Kate Richardson, SC, for the Medical Council, told the NSW Court of Appeal on Friday that the tribunal had erred in overlooking that while Mooney was serving his ban he took “multiple steps” to mislead medical experts and the tribunal over his dealing with police when caught with a bag of cocaine.

In October 2022, Mooney was arrested after collecting a bag of cocaine from a Corolla-driving dial-a-dealer outside his Bondi apartment.