In a rare public statement,a spokeswoman for Chief Justice Catherine Holmes AC said the previous orders had been lifted to allow Ms Trad’s name and the legal effort to be published because details of both had already been shared by “someone unknown” andrepeated in Parliament.
“It would be premature to assume that the original disclosure of the existence of the proceeding and the name of the applicant was a deliberate breach of the order,but the result has been to defeat its effect in part,” she said.
“Of course,if the individual or individuals who disclosed that information did so in wilful breach of the order,questions of contempt of court would be raised.”
Loading
Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman had as recently as Wednesday pointed to the non-publication order to avoid answering questions from the Opposition in parliament about whether she had signed off on legal indemnity to cover Ms Trad’s to court costs.
The orders from May last year had previously barred anyone but the CCC’s parliamentary oversight committee from being informed of Ms Trad’s identity in relation to her matter against the watchdog. Access to documents on the court file remains restricted. The application has been adjourned to a yet-to-be-fixed date.
In a statement of her own,issued on Thursday night,Ms Trad said of the court application:“This is course of action I have not taken lightly but one I felt compelled to take.”