A requester asked the Minister of Justice, Hon Amy Adams, for a copy of the report by Hon Ian Callinan QC concerning David Bain’s claim for compensation for wrongful conviction and imprisonment (the Callinan report). The Minister refused the request under section 9(2)(h) of the Official Information Act (OIA) in order to maintain legal professional privilege.
The Chief Ombudsman formed the opinion that the Callinan report was legally privileged; that privilege had not been waived; and that withholding was therefore necessary in order to maintain privilege. Furthermore, the need to withhold was not outweighed by the public interest in disclosure (section 9(1) OIA refers). The Minister was therefore entitled to refuse the request under section 9(2)(h) of the OIA.
This case note is published under the authority of the Ombudsmen Rules 1989 opens page in this tab. It sets out an Ombudsman’s view on the facts of a particular case. It should not be taken as establishing any legal precedent that would bind an Ombudsman in future.