The Tasmanian Government appears to be obfuscating about the future of Justice Gregory Geason’s position. Photo: Supreme Court of Tasmania.
Tasmanian Supreme Court Justice Gregory Geason faced court in Hobart on 1 December charged with verbal abuse, striking, tracking a person using technology, and pressuring a person to sign a contract.
The Justice was charged earlier that day for the offences that allegedly occurred between April and October this year.
He plead not guilty to all charges and was granted bail, and the matter will be heard on 6 February 2024.
Justice Geason was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2017 but had been on voluntary leave since early November at the recommendation of Chief Justice Alan Blow following an allegation of a “serious matter”. It wasn’t until the police released a statement on 1 December that the nature of the matter became publicly revealed.
On 5 December, Tasmania’s Attorney General Guy Barnett announced that parliament would be recalled on 12 December to debate a bill to initiate a commission of inquiry into the matter, but later that week he changed tack, reportedly on the back of legal advice.
“Earlier this week, the Tasmanian Government announced its intention to introduce a Bill to establish a Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry to provide advice to the Parliament regarding Justice Geason’s fitness to remain a judge,” Mr Barnett said on 8 December.
“Following consultation, the Attorney General has agreed to instead move a motion in both Houses of Parliament on 12 December 2023 calling on her Excellency the Governor to suspend Justice Gregory Geason under the Supreme Court (Judges’ Independence) Act 1857.”
“In light of the seriousness of the charges that Justice Geason is currently facing, it is appropriate that the judge be suspended,” he said.
“The government will continue to develop a Bill to ensure that a mechanism to assist Parliament and the Governor to consider the serious matter of the fitness for office of a Judge of the Supreme Court can be brought before Parliament at an appropriate time in the future.”
But shortly before Parliament was due to sit on 12 December, Mr Barnett informed MPs that he would be seeking to immediately suspend Parliament to give Members a briefing.
In a statement, Shadow Attorney General Ella Haddad labelled the late change as “a complete debacle”.
“Precisely what advice has the Attorney General been relying on up to this point?”
“We have called on the government to provide a copy of the legal advice they have received and to provide the briefing after question time.
“This is the third position the government has taken on this issue in the matter of a week, with a dozen different versions of the government’s original bill circulated.
“This whole situation is a scandal – with Parliament recalled, at enormous cost to the taxpayer, MPs travelling from right around the state, only to find the government was ready to suspend the parliament one minute into the sitting day.”
