Darwin silk to refer allegations against judge to Judicial Commission

Darwin silk Alistair Wyvill SC has revealed he will make a formal complaint to the Judicial Commission about the conduct of Supreme Court Justice Stephen Southwood, while refuting any suggestion his claims are unsubstantiated.

Alistair Wyvill SC has confirmed he will make a formal complaint to the Judicial Commission.

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DARWIN silk Alistair Wyvill SC has revealed he will make a formal complaint to the Judicial Commission about the conduct of Supreme Court Justice Stephen Southwood, while refuting any suggestion his claims are unsubstantiated.

On Tuesday, the NT News revealed Mr Wyvill wrote to Attorney-General Selena Uibo in June making allegations about Justice Southwood’s professional conduct and in a statement issued on Wednesday, Mr Wyvill said it was incorrect to categorise his claims as “unsubstantiated”.

“The allegations in my letter to the Attorney-General were substantiated by reference to a large volume of material including matters of public record like the decision of the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal referred to in the (NT News) article as well as affidavits and transcript from the proceedings before the tribunal,” he said.

“What is correct to say is that those allegations have not been proven in any proceedings to which Justice Southwood is a party and where he has been given an opportunity to refute them.”

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In his letter to Ms Uibo, Mr Wyvill said it would be “quite wrong” to refer his complaint to the yet to be established commission, citing similar concerns to those made by Civil Liberties Australia in a submission to the NT parliament about the small size of the jurisdiction.

But on Wednesday, Mr Wyvill said he had accepted Ms Uibo’s advice that the best course of action was to await the establishment of the commission.

“Following my correspondence with the Attorney and in accordance with her advice, I have determined to make a complaint to the Judicial Commission about the matters referred to in my correspondence as soon as that Commission is established,” he said.

“I remain concerned about the capacity of the Commission as it is proposed to be constituted to deal with a complaint of this kind.

“However, I have determined to make a complaint about these matters to the Commission when it comes into operation because of the reassurances the Attorney has given me and because it appears that I have no other choice in order to have these important matters properly addressed.”

Justice Southwood has declined to read the letter and as such the NT News has chosen not to publish any further details of the complaint.

“It would be inappropriate for Justice Southwood or any other member of the Supreme Court to make comment in relation to the matter,” a spokesman for the court said. “If Mr Wyvill believes he has a grievance then like any other member of the community he is entitled to raise his grievances with the Attorney-General.”

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