Rinehart v Welker [2011] NSWCA 403

Court of Appeal Supreme Court New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Rinehart v Welker [2011] NSWCA 403 Hearing dates: 7 December 2011 Decision date: 19 December 2011 Before: Bathurst CJ and McColl JA at [1]; Young JA at [57] Decision: 1. Discharge orders 1, 2 and 3 made by Tobias AJA on 31 October 2011; 2. Order that the defendants pay the applicants' costs of the review and of the hearing before Tobias AJA. [Note: The Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 provide (Rule 36.11) that unless the Court otherwise orders, a judgment or order is taken to be entered when it is recorded in the Court146s computerised court record system. Setting aside and variation of judgments or orders is dealt with by Rules 36.15, 36.16, 36.17 and 36.18. Parties should in particular note the time limit of fourteen days in Rule 36.16.] Catchwords: SUPPRESSION ORDERS- Court Suppression and Non-Publication Orders Act 2010, s 6- a primary objective of the administration of justice is to safeguard the public interest in open justice- principle of open justice one of the most fundamental aspects of the system of justice in Australia- the entitlement of the media to report on court proceedings is a corollary of the right of access to the court by members of the public- exceptions to open justice when court is acting in parental and administrative capacity, in blackmail and extortion cases and where disclosure of the information would seriously affect its commercial value- none of the exceptions apply.

SUPPRESSION ORDERS- Court Suppression and Non-Publication Orders Act 2010, s 8(1)(a)- whether the making of an order is necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice- meaning of the word "necessary"- necessary is a strong word- orders under the Act should only be made in exceptional circumstances- necessary does not mean convenient, reasonable or sensible- it is not sufficient that information is inherently confidential as distinct from personal or commercial information that has value as an asset that would be compromised.