Zha & Wun (No 10)

The matter before the Court involved an application by Ms Zha seeking leave to provide certain documents to other jurisdictions in Australian family law proceedings. The respondents, Mr Wun and Mr A Wun, opposed the application. The Court had to determine whether Ms Zha's request to disclose specific documents to other jurisdictions was permissible under the slip rule, and if so, whether the orders in question reflected the Court’s intention at the time they were made. The application was made under rule 5.01 of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth).

The legal issues before the Court involved interpreting the slip rule and whether the documents in question could be disclosed to other jurisdictions. Ms Zha argued that the documents formed part of the court record, were used in the proceedings, were not subject to any Harman undertaking, and that disclosure would not constitute a communication to the public within the meaning of section 114Q. Mr Wun opposed the application, contending that the documents lacked specificity and precision. Additionally, Mr A Wun argued that there was no evidence to show that the documents were necessary for Ms Zha to achieve justice in the other proceedings.

The Court found that the orders in question did reflect the Court’s intention at the time they were made. However, it dismissed the application for leave to provide the documents to other jurisdictions. The Court was not satisfied that the documents were necessary for Ms Zha to achieve justice in the other proceedings, particularly due to the lack of evidence supporting this contention. Consequently, the Court ruled that the application for disclosure should be dismissed.

The Court dismissed the application as sought in the Further Amended Application in a Proceeding filed on 25 November 2024. This order is subject to the entry in the Court’s records and may be subject to review or variation under the relevant Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth).