SUPREME CONTEMPT FOR THE COAST
SPECIAL REPORT: Opposition MPs and top lawyers take aim at State Government after higher court sitting ends early
POLITICIANS and the legal industry’s sharpest minds have implored the State Government to commit to a permanent Supreme Court on the Gold Coast after the city’s first circuit sitting in 11 years ended abruptly yesterday.
Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath (above) last night said there were “no plans” to expand to the Gold Coast.
Surfers Paradise MP John-Paul Langbroek accused the Government of treating the issue like the tiresome push for an upgrade of the M1. “This is another example of Brisbane ignoring the Gold Coast,” he said.
THE Supreme Court left the Gold Coast abruptly yesterday after a successful circuit sitting involving more than 14 cases.
And Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath cannot say when it will return.
Opposition MPs and the legal industry’s sharpest minds last night implored the State Government to reconsider its stance on establishing a permanent Supreme Court in Southport after Ms D’Ath said there were “no plans” to expand to the Gold Coast.
Surfers Paradise MP JohnPaul Langbroek accused the Government of treating the issue like the tiresome push for an upgrade of the M1.
“This is another example of Brisbane ignoring the Gold Coast like with the M1,” he said. “We need to see some commitment for the Gold Coast – justice delayed is justice denied.”
Legal practitioners have been pushing for a permanent Supreme Court on the Gold Coast for years and the twoweek circuit sitting this month was slated as a step to getting one full-time.
They say a full-time higher court would reduce the cost of travel for witnesses, lawyers and defendants, increase efficiency by preventing lawyers from having to travel up and down the congested M1, allow victims and their families to easily observe proceedings and ensure Gold Coast trials are heard in front of juries made up of Gold Coast residents.
There are enough court rooms and judges’ chambers at the Southport Courthouse to accommodate the higher court.
The circuit sitting, the first to be held in Southport for more than a decade, left the Coast a day ahead of schedule.
A sentence due to be heard yesterday was adjourned to Brisbane today because Queensland Corrective Services couldn’t get the defendant from Woodford Correctional Centre to Southport in time.
“The Southport circuit sitting for the Supreme Court will finish today because all the listed work has been finalised,” said a spokeswoman for the Supreme Court yesterday.
“As stated in our August 9 response to you ‘Indications are that the current listings will be insufficient to fill the entire two weeks’.”
The Bulletin asked Ms D’Ath if the successful sitting meant the State Government would consider establishing a
THERE ARE NO PLANS (TO ESTABLISH A PERMANENT SUPREME COURT IN SOUTHPORT).
ATTORNEYGENERAL YVETTE D’ATH
WE MANAGED TO DISPOSE OF MORE MATTERS THAN WE NORMALLY WOULD IN THE SAME PERIOD IN BRISBANE.
MICHAEL GATENBY
permanent Supreme Court in Southport.
“There are no plans,” her spokeswoman replied.
The sitting included the sentencing of Linda Currie for the manslaughter of her former partner, two former Mongols bikies jailed for their part in a drug syndicate and the sentencing of property developer Steven Seabrook and his wife Rachel Seabrook for a Main Beach drug ring.
In every case heard, which included 14 sentences and one trial, there were family, friends and supporters from the Gold Coast in the public gallery.
Gatenby Lawyers director Michael Gatenby said that during the sittings he had to attend a sentence in Brisbane because the prosecutor was reluctant to hold the matter in Southport.
He had to return to the Gold Coast that afternoon for a sentence at the higher court sitting.
I EXPECT WHAT WILL HAPPEN IS THE CHIEF JUSTICE WILL LOOK VERY CLOSELY AT ITS SUCCESS AND HOPE THEY WOULD HAVE MORE REGULAR SITTINGS HERE.
BILL POTTS
I
Mr Gatenby represented Anthony Soong during an attempted murder trial last week which resulted in a hung jury.
He said there were other benefits as well as costs.
“When you are talking about Gold Coast suburbs the people are travelling through and knowing whether an area is rural or in town,” Mr Gatenby said. “I don’t know whether Brisbane juries would appreciate that.”
Mr Gatenby said the circuit
sitting managed to deal with a high number of cases.
“We managed to dispose of more matters than we normally would in the same period in Brisbane,” he said.
Mr Gatenby said if a fulltime Southport Supreme Court was not possible, he would like sittings to return at regular intervals.
Potts Lawyers director Bill Potts said there was a proven need for a Supreme Court on the Gold Coast.
JOHN-PAUL LANGBROEK
“I expect what will happen is the Chief Justice will look very closely at its success and I hope they would have more regular sittings here every two or three months,” he said.
Mr Potts said regular sittings would bring attention to the huge workload emanating from the Gold Coast.
In the 2016-17 financial year, 194 cases were committed to the Supreme Court from Southport, all to be heard in Brisbane. It was a big jump from 2008-09 when 114 cases were handed up.
Bamberry Lawyers solicitor Sam Jackson, who had two clients sentenced during the sittings, said holding the Supreme Court in Southport reduced travel time for his clients and their families.
“We were able to resolve matters expediently,” he said.
Mr Jackson said a regular Supreme Court sitting in Southport would increase the speed cases were dealt with.
WE NEED TO SEE SOME COMMITMENT FOR THE GOLD COAST – JUSTICE DELAYED IS JUSTICE DENIED.