Her Majesty's Attorney-General in and for the United Kingdom

The parties before the High Court of Australia were Her Majesty's Attorney-General in and for the United Kingdom and Heinemann Publishers Australia. The dispute concerned the production of certain documents, with the Attorney-General objecting to their disclosure on the grounds of foreign state privilege and legal professional privilege. The proceedings involved the consideration of consolidated particulars of public domain, which were presented as a substitute for a previous exhibit and amended to refer to pages in the published book for ease of reference.

The court was required to determine whether it would recognise a public interest in the United Kingdom in refusing to order the production of documents that might be contrary to the legitimate interests of foreign sovereign states. This issue arose in the context of a broader dispute where the plaintiffs had objected to producing 14 categories of documents, citing foreign state privilege or, alternatively, legal professional privilege. These documents included legal advice to a ruler, communications with the United Kingdom government and other sovereign states, and correspondence concerning drilling rights and territorial claims.

The court was referred to the English Court of Appeal decision in *Buttes Gas and Oil Co v Hammer* (1981) 1 QB 223. In that case, the court held that it would recognise a public interest in the United Kingdom in refusing to order the disclosure of documents where such disclosure would be contrary to the legitimate interests of foreign sovereign states. This principle was applied to the present proceedings, indicating the court's willingness to consider and uphold claims of foreign state privilege when justified by the public interest of the relevant nation.