FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Soames v Secretary, Department of Social Services (No 2) [2014] FCA 1164

THE COURT ORDERS THAT:

1.    No access be granted to this file without the leave of Perram J first being obtained.

Note:    Entry of orders is dealt with in Rule 39.32 of the Federal Court Rules 2011.

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

1    On 1 October 2014 I dismissed Mr Soames’ application for leave to appeal: Soames v Secretary, Department of Social Services [2014] FCA 1054. On 7 October 2014 Jagot J barred Mr Soames from bringing any further appeals, howsoever described, from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in relation to his disability support pension or certain other entitlements, without the leave of the Court: Soames v Secretary, Department of Social Services (No 2) [2014] FCA 1062.

2    On the file in the application before me are two affidavits of Mr Soames and a draft notice of appeal. These contain allegations of a lurid kind against a miscellany of people most of whom were not before the Court. In the judgment at [26] I invited the Secretary to consider whether orders should now be made to suppress these scandalous materials. On 22 October 2014 the Secretary duly forwarded submissions seeking suppression of various aspects of the documents.

3    I am not fully persuaded that the contents of these documents are likely to be damaging to anyone. Although the allegations are colourful and outrageous, it is difficult to see that anyone would take them seriously.

4    Further, I have doubts whether all of the material pointed to by the Secretary is truly scandalous within the meaning of rule 6.01 of the Federal Court Rules 2001 (Cth) rather than merely hair-raising.

5    In those circumstances, all I propose to do is to direct that no access be granted to this file without my leave first being obtained.

Associate:

Dated:    31 October 2014