CW: Sexual Violence
On Friday, a jury in the County Court of Victoria found a man guilty of raping a woman twice in January 2024.
Despite the guilty verdict, a suppression order remains in place, meaning media outlets are not allowed to publish his name.
Instead, the perpetrator has only been referred to as a man, in his 20s, from a “high-profile” family.
The case comes amid growing criticism of the widespread use of suppression orders in Victoria’s court system.
What is a suppression order and why would a court use one?
Suppression orders
Australia’s judicial system is based on the principle of “open justice”.
Court proceedings are normally available for the public to see and media to report on.
However, suppression orders (also known as gag orders) can be introduced to restrict what is made public.
When a gag order exists, it becomes an offence to publish details the judge has asked be kept secret.
Anyone who publishes those details can face prison time or heavy fines.
Why?
There are several reasons why a judge could decide to keep details like the names of alleged victims and perpetrators sealed from the public.
For example, alleged victims of crimes can request a suppression order to stop their name being revealed, due to the stress of being in the public eye. Suppression orders can also protect children who are accused of, or victims of, crimes.
A judge might also allow an order if an alleged offender’s safety is at risk, including for mental health reasons.
A gag order could also be introduced if there is a risk that a person’s right to a fair trial is undermined by media publishing details.
If the media does not abide by these rules, they could be fined more than $500,000. Fines differ from state to state.
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Media companies often make legal applications to stop gag orders from coming into effect, and usually argue publishing the details are important for transparency.
Latest case
Last week, a man from a “high-profile family” was found guilty of raping a woman in 2024.
The jury heard the offender raped the complainant at his home.
The victim testified that she was in a dark bedroom on 14 January 2024 when the man snuck in, climbed into bed, and penetrated her without consent, pretending to be a man she had previously had consensual sex with.
His identity has remained suppressed and media can’t publish the reason for the suppression order.
Victoria
According to analysis by The Age, in 2023, Victorian courts issued 521 suppression orders. The next highest state was South Australia with 308.
In the same year, NSW issued 133, meaning Victorian courts issuedalmost four times the number of suppression orders despite having a smaller population.
Justin Quill, a partner at major law firm Thomson Geer, says the high rate of suppression orders stems from a precedent set during the “gangland wars” in the 2000s.
The gangland wars were a series ofviolent conflicts between rival criminal groups in Melbourne, primarily over control of the illegal drug trade, resulting in the deaths of several major underworld figures including Carl Williams.
“You had [corrupt police] charging someone and then being charged themselves. There were all these overlapping cases… [It] became almost the norm in Victoria — judges and barristers almost became conditioned to suppression orders,” Quill said.
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