Dunn & Dunn (No 2)

The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1) was asked to decide whether certain documents from family law proceedings could be used in criminal proceedings against the applicant. The applicant, Mr Dunn, was defending charges of assault against his former wife, Ms Dunn. He sought the release of documents from the family law proceedings for use in his criminal proceedings. The legal issues centred around whether the release of these documents was permissible under section 121(9) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). This section only permits the voluntary dissemination of information, not evidence that may be given in court. The court also had to determine whether there were special circumstances that would justify releasing the documents from the implied undertaking.

The court found that the documents in question were subject to the implied undertaking under section 121. However, it also found that special circumstances did exist that justified the release of these documents. The court noted that the applicant was defending a serious charge, and the documents in question were directly relevant to his defence. The court also noted that the respondent had not opposed the release of some of the documents. The court concluded that the special circumstances justified the release of the documents for use in the criminal proceedings.

The court ordered that the applicant could provide specific documents to his criminal law solicitors, the South Australian Police, and the Magistrates Court of South Australia. These documents included certain paragraphs of affidavits and a notice of risk filed by the respondent. The form of the order is subject to entry in the Court’s records and may be subject to review or variation.