After outcry from journalists and editors across Australia’s major media companies, rules blocking key court document access have been overhauled – again.
The Federal Court has loosened controversial restrictions blocking access to key court documents until a case had appeared before a judge, after backlash from journalists and editors across Australia’s major media companies.a “full-frontal assault on the principle of open justice” and risked keeping crucial information about court cases secret for months longer than necessary.
On Sunday afternoon, the court shared an update to the rules that would let non-parties such as the media apply to access unrestricted documents like statements of claim, originating applications and concise statements before a hearing – but only if all parties agree. The update from Chief Justice James Allsop noted that while the principle of “open justice” was the overarching principle guiding the court, it could not come at the expense of fairness to parties involved in legal proceedings.
The court needed to adopt new rules that protect parties against “the abuse of its procedures”, he added. It is believed the changes were partly driven by concerns about litigants including information about people and businesses they were suing that was not relevant to the case and could be embarrassing if made public.
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