Douglas and Ferris and Anor

In the matter of *Douglas and Ferris and Anor*, Judge Riethmuller of the Federal Court of Australia considered an application concerning the production of documents pursuant to a subpoena. The dispute arose from an objection by Mr L Douglas to the production of certain documents.

The court was required to determine the extent to which Mr Douglas should comply with the subpoena, specifically regarding the production of documents described in its schedule. Furthermore, the court needed to establish the conditions under which the produced documents could be inspected and copied by the legal practitioners for the parties, and crucially, the extent to which those legal practitioners could disclose the contents of these documents, particularly concerning the identity of trustees, the location of trust property, and other information contained within the trust deeds, tax returns, and financial statements.

Judge Riethmuller ordered that Mr Douglas must produce the documents as described in the subpoena, with an exception for documents already produced relating to item 3. Upon production, the documents were to be released to the legal practitioners for inspection and photocopying. However, the legal practitioners were restrained from showing or providing copies of these documents to the parties themselves, or permitting them to inspect the documents, until further order. Crucially, the legal practitioners were also restrained from advising or informing the parties of the identity of trustees or the address of properties held by the trusts. They were otherwise permitted to advise their clients regarding the information contained within the produced documents, save for the specific restrictions noted. The court also made orders regarding applications for costs and granted liberty to apply.