Unlimited suppression orders permanently banning publication of undercover police investigative techniques used to obtain confessions in criminal trials are not warranted under ss 18 and 19 of the Supreme Court Act 1986 (Vic), being both contrary to the principle of open justice and practically ineffective. Limited orders protecting the identities of individual undercover operatives for a defined period may be justified. The appellate jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal under s 17A(3) in respect of suppression orders made during criminal trials remains uncertain.
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