Journalists and editors from across Australia’s media sector are urging Federal Court Chief Justice James Allsop to wind back rules restricting access to court documents which were implemented without any consultation.
On Friday, the Federal Court revealed it had quietly updated its internal rules, adding a new sentence which “prevents a person who is not a party from inspecting certain documents in a proceeding until after the first directions hearing or hearing ”.
AUSTRAC launched its 2017 legal action against Commonwealth Bank of Australia alleging breaches of anti-money-laundering laws “It is at variance with the rules in many other courts around Australia and internationally,” he said. But some people within the court are unhappy with the decision and are increasingly concerned about what it could mean for open justice, theThere are already discrepancies between state courts in how open they are with documents. In 2010 the NSW courts blocked the Court Information Act from coming into force, despite already being passed by both houses of parliament.
“There is also a significant risk that the filing of some important cases, especially large and complex disputes, will simply not be reported at all because the parties decline to co-operate. The idea that applications for access can simply wait until after the first hearing reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how journalism works and its role in a democratic society.”
Nine’s masthead editors said the changes would be likely to result in delays to the hearing of cases, increasing the costs for the courts, the media and the parties.
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