Billionaire tech founder Richard White, one of Australia’s richest men, is at the centre of a legal bid to suppress court documents in a feud with an eastern suburbs beauty entrepreneur and former Real Housewives of Sydney contender.
White’s lawyers sought a suppression order on Tuesday preventing affidavits filed in the dispute with Linda Rogan, owner of a Double Bay laser clinic and self-described “beauty addict”, from being released publicly ahead of a final hearing.
The Federal Court made an interim suppression order on Tuesday and referred the suppression dispute to a duty judge, Ian Jackman, who is expected to hear the matter as early as this Wednesday.
Rogan’s barrister, Bridie Nolan, told the court in Sydney on Tuesday that her client did not oppose the release of the documents.
Nolan said her client “supports the principles of open justice” and had already expressed her view that she had “no objection to a third party obtaining the information”.
John-Paul Redmond, acting for White, had initially sought an order that the documents “not be released until such time as they are before the ... judge” eventually hearing the case.
At the centre of the Federal Court dispute is Rogan’s bid to set aside a bankruptcy notice issued to her by White in August. This is a formal demand for payment of at least $10,000 that may be made following a court order.
A person has 21 days to comply with a bankruptcy notice. If they fail to do so, they have committed an act of bankruptcy.
“The application raises a number of grounds,” Nolan said. “One of the allegations that is made is that this bankruptcy notice is an abuse of process; it’s been served for a collateral purpose.”