Return of Interlocutory Application Wrongly Returned - NSD 1654/2018

Phillip Sweeney made this Freedom of Information request to Federal Court of Australia

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Federal Court of Australia did not have the information requested.

Phillip Sweeney

Dear Federal Court of Australia,

The Federal Court Enforcement, Endorsement and Contempt Practice Note (GPN-ENF) provides guidance as to how a Contempt in the Face of the Court by Publication can be brought to the attention of the Court.

On the 31 July 2019 the Australian Financial Review published an article titled "Serial pest hijacks ASIC's case against NAB over fees scandal".

This sensationalist and intimidatory article was promoted by a Twitter post which was a complete fabrication which stated:

"ICYMI Serial pest who bombarded ASIC with hundreds of requests signed Pussy Galore and Goldfinger hijacks landmark fees-for-no-service case against NAB"

In response to these publications which were not a "fair and accurate" report of proceedings afoot in the Federal Court, an Interlocutory Application dated 16 September 2019, together with a Statement of Charge and a supporting Affidavit was lodged with the Court.

No order was made by the presiding Judge with respect to this interlocutory Application.

However, these documents were wrongly returned attached to a letter dated 20 September 2019 signed by a junior staff member of the District Registry.

These documents were then sent back to the District Registrar attached to a letter dated 25 September 2019.

The document I seek is a copy of the covering letter dated 25 September 2019 addressed to the District Registrar titled "Re: Interlocutory Application Wrongly Returned"

The case reference number is NSD 1654/2018

Yours faithfully,

Phillip Sweeney

External FOI, Federal Court of Australia

1 Attachment

UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Sweeney,

Please find a letter acknowledging receipt of your request attached to this email.

Kind regards,

FOI Officer
Federal Court of Australia

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External FOI, Federal Court of Australia

1 Attachment

UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Sweeney,

Please find, attached to this email, correspondence in relation to your FOI request.

Kind regards

FOI Officer
Federal Court of Australia

show quoted sections

Phillip Sweeney

Dear Federal Court of Australia,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Federal Court of Australia's handling of my FOI request 'Return of Interlocutory Application Wrongly Returned - NSD 1654/2018'.

This matter is clearly one of public interest, since a journalist has been able to dictate to a justice of the Federal Court what evidence should and should not be presented to the Federal Court that would expose a very serious fraud in Australia's compulsory superannuation system.

A fraud where hundreds of widows have had their survivorship pensions stolen!

How is it be possible that no record has been kept relating to the administration of documents and evidence of a contempt in the face of the court, where a party to the proceedings was disparaged as a "Serial Pest" who had "hijacked" proceedings afoot in the Federal Court.

It was in fact the journalist James Frost from the Australian Financial Review who "hijacked" proceedings by getting evidence of a major superannuation fraud involving one of the Respondents in NSD 1654/2018 removed from the Court File.

Such an interference with the course of justice cannot be simply ignored by making the evidence of the contempt of court "disappear".

Such an interference amounts to an attempt to pervert the course of justice an enlivens Section 43 of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth).

CRIMES ACT 1914 - SECT 43
Attempting to pervert justice
(1) A person commits an offence if:

(a) the person attempts to obstruct, to prevent, to pervert or to defeat the course of justice in relation to a judicial power; and

(b) the judicial power is the judicial power of the Commonwealth.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.righttoknow.org.au/request/r...

Yours faithfully,

Phillip Sweeney

External FOI, Federal Court of Australia

1 Attachment

UNCLASSIFIED

Dear Mr Sweeney,

 

Please find correspondence from the Deputy Principal Registrar of the
Federal Court of Australia attached to this email.

 

Kind regards,

 

FOI Officer