The chief of the Australian Defence Force has lost a bid to keep information obtained by a war crimes inquiry from three news publishers defending against a defamation suit by war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith.
Lawyers from three newspapers being sued by war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith for defamation are seeking sensitive documents alleged to show the former soldier asked his wife to lie about an affair.
The chief of the Australian Defence Force has been given the opportunity to put on further evidence after a judge said he would otherwise order that material provided to a war crimes inquiry by Ben Roberts-Smith be produced in the war veteran’s defamation case against three news publishers.
After claiming he could be vindicated only by giving evidence in open court, war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith looks likely to get his wish, as the parties to his defamation proceedings finalise negotiations with the Federal Government on the use of national security information.
A last-minute bid by the Federal Attorney-General to protect national security information has delayed an interlocutory hearing in war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith’s defamation lawsuit, potentially pushing out the trial date.
War veteran Ben Roberts-Smith has told a judge hearing defamation proceedings against several media companies over articles accusing him of war crimes that he can only be vindicated if he is allowed to give evidence in open court, as the Federal Government seeks to impose restrictions on the case due to national security concerns.
The six-week trial in four defamation cases brought by war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith has been pushed off because of restrictions on in-person hearings and the Attorney-General’s decision to invoke national security law and cloak the proceedings in secrecy.
A court has upheld two decisions by the Australian Government Takeovers Panel that a bid by asset manager Aurora Funds Management to replace Molopo Energy’s directors was made in “unacceptable circumstances”.
The CEO of Lottoland says the company has “finally been vindicated” by a court ruling that overturned a decision by the Australian Communications and Media Authority that outlawed a number of its jackpot betting services.
In a win for the corporate watchdog, a court has found collapsed education provider Vocation engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct and breached its continuous disclosure obligations by failing to inform shareholders of problems with a large government contract.