Judge lays down strict conditions of confidentiality to cover all documents submitted to tribunal as evidence

OPENING yesterday's proceedings, Mr Justice McCracken said he and counsel for the tribunal were "very disturbed" by an article in last weekend's Sunday Independent which had attributed certain statements to ". . . senior legal sources closely associated with the tribunal ... a legal source involved in the tribunal and a tribunal source".

He felt that "an implication could be taken from these phrases that the journalists concerned received information from one of the lawyers acting for the tribunal". He wished to make it quite clear" that "no information relating to any evidence obtained by, or to be given to, the tribunal has been communicated, or will be communicated, by any of the tribunal's advisers, or staff, to any members of the press".

He wished to say further that "some of the facts alleged in the article came as complete news to the tribunal and we have no knowledge of them whatever". He added: "They may or may not be true, but we are certainly unaware of their accuracy."

The reason the tribunal was treating the implication in the article "so seriously", he said, was because "it might lead persons who furnish documents or information to the tribunal to believe there might be breaches of confidentiality by the tribunal, or its advisers, or staff".

He then read from a memorandum, which the tribunal had drawn up and which set out procedures on the matter. The memorandum will be circulated to all who are required to make discovery. He hoped this would reassure people that confidentiality would be respected.

The memorandum makes six points:

. the tribunal will at all times strive to ensure that the legitimate interests of parties, as regards confidential or sensitive information, "whether of a commercial or other nature", will be respected:

. documents submitted to the tribunal will be kept in Dublin Castle under "strict security" and will only be available to Mr Justice McCracken counsel and solicitors acting for the tribunal, the registrar of the tribunal and the tribunal office manager;

. all irrelevant information in documents will be "blocked out" [made illegible];

. where there is difficulty in determining what is relevant and irrelevant in a document, the tribunal will retain it in its entirety until it can correctly identify what is relevant. Then originals and full copies will be returned, while copies retained will be "blocked out", except for what has been decided is relevant to the proceedings;

. counsel for the tribunal will "at all times" be willing to discuss what portion of documents should be "blocked out" as irrelevant, but the final decision will remain with the tribunal. It will seek "to accommodate and respect every concern" parties, may express in relation to what is irrelevant in documents.

. on completion of its final report the tribunal will return all original documents and destroy all copies. However, it retains the right to hold on to documents, as it thinks fit, in the context of a risk of any litigation which may arise involving the tribunal. These documents, too, will be securely retained and, in due course, be, returned or destroyed.