Category: Suppression

ACT Supreme Court ... Heavily redacted sentencing remarks for former intelligence officer made public ... Follows court proceedings and sentencing having occurred in total secrecy ... Chief Justice McCallum: "Secrecy is anathema to the rule of law" ... Reasons for redactions subject to sceptical analysis ... Courts Editor Stephen Murray reports ... more

ACT Supreme Court ... Chief Justice Lucy McCallum maintains non-publication order on application from Bruce Lehrmann ... Application followed trial being aborted but before decision not to pursue retrial ... Chief Justice not wanting to contribute to "media frenzy" ... Courts Editor Stephen Murray reports ... more

ACT Court of Appeal ... Open justice victory for The Age ... Gains access to affidavits used in confiscation of criminal assets proceedings ... Proceedings heard in closed court, ex parte, and orders made without admissions ... Principle of open justice considered ... Courts Editor Stephen Murray reports ... more

Plenty of room for closed justice in the NSWLRC's Open Justice report ... A myriad of recommendations ... No publication and suppression orders ... Closed courts ... Additional restrictions for journalists ... Exceptions ... Reporting cases involving children ... Reporting sexual assault ... Richard Ackland reports ... more

NSW Court of Criminal Appeal ... Non-publication orders lifted over murder trials ... Argument reporting would prejudice upcoming District Court trial ... Non-publication orders had been in place for nearly five years ... Alternative relief, including contempt, available for lurid reporting ... Courts Editor Stephen Murray reports ... more

Federal Court ... Justice Jagot makes orders for removal of unredacted ABC defence and Christian Porter's reply from Court file ... Necessary to prevent prejudice to proper administration of justice ... Giving effect to compromise and contractual bargain ... No special treatment ... Courts Editor Stephen Murray reports ... more

Federal Court ... Bret Walker SC: Media intervenors not "self appointed bailiffs" on agreement between Porter and ABC ... Agreement to discontinue proceedings includes order seeking removal of unredacted defence and reply from court file ... Walker: Removal not "expungement", simply beyond reach of public right of access ... Compromise should be encouraged ... Dauid Sibtain: Removal derogation of overarching purpose of open justice ... "Special treatment" ... Not established that defence was scandalous, vexatious, oppressive or abuse of process ... Issues not ventilated ... Decision reserved ... Court Editor Stephen Murray reports ... more

Supreme Court of NSW ... Defendant wants to publish allegations about a sexual affair ... Free speech ... #MeToo ... Wide gag order as part of AVO ... Some allegations found to be untrue ... Damages inadequate to protect reputation ... Injunction ... Further submissions on what may be published ... Anna Kretowicz reports ... more

Justice Peter Hamill ... Daily Telegraph reporter granted partial access to the court file in a case involving extended supervision orders for a high-risk sex offender ... Open justice as an overarching legal principle ... Non-party access to court file ... Glitch in the practice note ... Countervailing considerations ... Quality of court reporting, click-bait and embarrassment not sufficient to overcome fundamental principles ... Stephen Murray reports ... more

Pseudonym order granted to prominent lawyer accused of jilting his lover ... Salacious claims ... Embarrassment ... Trespass to the body ... Battery ... Nervous shock ... Order necessary to prevent the applicant's wife from discovering infidelities ... Supreme Court of Victoria ... Janek Drevikovsky reports ... more