ON the facts that have come to light, the decision to send 34 federal police into the offices of Seven West Media is beginning to look like over-reach.
• As well as marching into the offices of the broadcaster and publisher, the Australian Federal Police also visited the offices of Seven West’s Sydney lawyers, Addisons.
• Seven is furious and has hit back with a legal strategy that could soon have the AFP in the Federal Court explaining itself to a judge.
• The raids, which took place on Tuesday, were aimed at enforcing the Proceeds of Crime Act in relation to a rumoured $2 million interview deal with convicted drug-smuggler Schapelle Corby.
• They seem to have elicited one relevant document - an unsigned agreement with the Corby family that Seven says was never consummated. No contract with Schapelle Corby was found.
• The police took away a sealed computer hard-drive that is the subject of an unresolved claim of client legal privilege.
• Seven has asserted that it has not done a deal with Corby and the raids were not necessary because it was already complying with AFP orders to produce documents. The AFP disagrees and believes it had not been receiving everything it wanted.
• After the shock of the raids subsided, Seven and its lawyers put together a plan to attack what they believe is the flawed legal basis for the raids.
• If they succeed, it could expose the AFP to accusations that it misled a court with an affidavit that, Seven believes, makes unjustified and adverse statements about a prominent Sydney lawyer.
• That lawyer is Justine Munsie of Addisons, who has been dealing with the AFP’s production orders for Seven.
• The AFP officers who raided her firm came equipped with an order under section 246 of the Proceeds of Crime Act that requires those with knowledge of the law firm’s computer system to help the AFP obtain data.
• The order says “you are reasonably suspected of having committed the offence stated in the relevant warrant ... “
• Munsie is among those who have been selected by Chambers and Partners for inclusion in its guide to the nation’s best lawyers. She is one of the few media specialists who have been included in the rankings that appear on this page.
• On Wednesday, another law firm joined the fray when Atanaskovic Hartnell wrote to AFP officer Jeffrey Kokles on behalf of Seven, Addisons and Munsie seeking access to all the documents that the AFP relied upon when seeking orders under section 246. That letter asks Kokles to correct any court or registry record “and make it clear that there is no suspicion (or any proper basis for a suspicion) that Ms Munsie and/or Addisons had committed any offence”.
• Atanaskovic Hartnell has given Kokles until 5pm AEDT today to comply with its request.
• If nothing happens, the next step is to seek an order for certiorari in the Federal Court and the eventual quashing of the section 246 orders.
• If that proves successful, it would clear the way for the final step: Seven and Munsie would be able to launch separate proceedings in which Seven would seek damages for injurious falsehood and Munsie would be expected to seek compensation.
• The key issue in this rapidly expanding legal war is likely to be the way in which Munsie responded to the AFP’s orders.
• If the AFP’s documentation asserts that Seven’s co-operation was inadequate, Munsie’s records of what happened will be crucial.
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