CONFIDENTIAL COMMUNICATIONS – AUSTRALIA

Medibank must release hack reports

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Original article by Angelica Snowden
The Australian – Page: 17 : 8-Apr-25

The Federal Court has ruled that Medibank’s customers should be given access to cyber-security reports that were prepared by Deloitte in the wake of the health insurer’s data breach in October 2022. Medibank had contended that the reports were subject to legal professional privilege. Justice Helen Rofe noted that Medibank had consistently stated that it would share the results of the external review, although she concluded that chairman Mike Wilkins had in fact never intended to do so. Customers who were affected by the cyber-attack are pursuing a class action against Medibank.

CORPORATES
MEDIBANK PRIVATE LIMITED – ASX MPL, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED

ABC warns national anti-corruption commission could investigate journalists’ work

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Original article by Paul Karp
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 19-Oct-22

The ABC has raised a number of concerns in its submission to a parliamentary inquiry on the proposed National Anti-Corruption Commission. The public broadcaster said the definition of corruption means the legitimate work of ABC journalists could come under scrutiny by the NACC if they receive confidential government information or documents in the normal course of their work. The ABC has called for editorial work to be excluded from the scope of the NACC’s powers. The Australia’s Right To Know Coalition in turn has expressed concern that warrants could be used to reveal journalists’ sources.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIA’S RIGHT TO KNOW COALITION OF MEDIA COMPANIES

National cabinet secrecy: senator to cross the floor

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Original article by Ronald Mizen
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 29-Sep-21

The federal government will need the support of four crossbench senators for its legislation to overturn a Federal Court ruling on the status of the national cabinet. Justice Richard White recently ruled in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal that the national cabinet is not covered by secrecy laws. Liberal senator Gerard Rennick has advised that he will vote against the legislation, stating that he has no time for secrecy and that Australians have a right to know what is discussed in meetings of the national cabinet.

CORPORATES
FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS TRIBUNAL, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Nine, News Corp resist Porter bid to protect his reputation

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Original article by Michaela Whitbourn
Brisbane Times – Page: Online : 19-Aug-21

Industry Minister Christian Porter recently filed an official notice of discontinuance of his defamation action against the ABC, several months after the parties reached a settlement. Porter is now seeking a court order to prevent News Corp Australia and Nine Entertainment from using 27 pages of the ABC’s defence document that have been officially removed from the court’s public record. The media groups had previously been given access to the ABC’s full 37-page defence; Porter and his lawyers will argue that the media companies cannot use the redacted sections for any purpose other than their previous involvement in the defamation case.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, SCIENCE, ENERGY AND RESOURCES

Media regime just a way to keep bad laws

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Original article by Richard Ferguson, Leo Shanahan
The Weekend Australian – Page: 7 : 29-Feb-20

The Australian Federal Police and the Department of Home Affairs have used a joint submission to the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security to propose a ‘notice to produce’ regime for journalists. This would require an independent body to assess requests from security agencies for access to documents and communications between journalists and their confidential sources. The proposal has been criticised by News Corp Australia’s executive chairman Michael Miller, while Labor contends that journalists would still be at risk from prosecution and jail.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY JOINT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

AMP and Clayton Utz roll over for ASIC

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Original article by James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 12-Mar-19

An AMP spokesperson has confirmed that it has withdrawn its claim of legal and professional privilege over documents sought by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission regarding the fee-for-no-service scandal. Clayton Utz had been involved in the claim; the documents in question included notes taken by Clayton Utz in interviews with AMP employees over the scandal. ASIC deputy commissioner Daniel Crennan attacked AMP for trying to delay its investigation, although he said it was pleased that the sought documents had now been released.

CORPORATES
AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, CLAYTON UTZ

ASIC goes to court in AMP document hunt

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Original article by Ben Butler, Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 15 & 19 : 18-Dec-18

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission is seeking a court order to compel AMP to provide access to documents relating to the fees-for-no-service scandal. AMP contends that the transcripts of Clayton Utz’s interviews with AMP employees regarding the scandal are subject to legal professional privilege, which ASIC disputes. The financial services royal commission had been told that Clayton Utz’s report on the scandal had been altered following discussions with key AMP executives.

CORPORATES
AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, CLAYTON UTZ, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Glencore: AFR must remove articles

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Original article by Neil Chenoweth
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 11-Oct-18

Lawyers acting on behalf of Glencore have asked Fairfax Media to remove documents from its website which are claimed to be subject to legal privilege. The documents in question are associated with an article published by the "Australian Financial Review" with regard to Glencore’s restructuring of its Australian division in 2014, which is under scrutiny by the Australian Taxation Office. Fairfax has rejected suggestions that it has infringed on the miner’s legal rights.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, GLENCORE PLC, KING AND WOOD MALLESONS, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, INTERNATIONAL CONSORTIUM OF INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISTS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, BRITISH BROADCASTING CORPORATION

ATO targets legal privilege

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Original article by Neil Chenoweth
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 9-Oct-18

The Australian Taxation Office is questioning the use of legal professional privilege by companies and their advisers. Tax Commissioner Chris Jordan stated in March that the ATO’s views of what constitutes professional privilege seem to differ from those held by taxpayers and their advisers. Deputy commissioner Mark Konza has stated that when he sought to audit the tax affairs of one company, every document he sought access to was claimed to be the subject of professional privilege. The ATO may seek to impose tax promoter penalties on large accounting firms like KPMG and PwC over their role in the promotion of schemes that seek to avoid tax.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS AUSTRALIA (INTERNATIONAL) PTY LTD, ERNST AND YOUNG, DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED, GLENCORE PLC, APPLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT AUSTRALIA, CHEVRON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

News leaders unite to resist spy laws that could criminalise journalism

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Original article by Dana McCauley
The Australian – Page: 24 & 26 : 5-Feb-18

The media industry has expressed concern about the broader implications of the Federal Government’s foreign interference bill on freedom of the press. Paul Whittaker, the editor-in-chief of "The Australian", says journalists could breach the new offence of handling classified information simply by seeking to confirm the validity of a document they have received. "Herald Sun" editor Damon Johnston warns that the legislation could potentially be used by a future government to silence the media, while the ABC’s John Lyons argues that media companies already have sufficient procedures in place for handling confidential information.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN SECURITY INTELLIGENCE ORGANISATION, UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET