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‘Lawyer X’ Nicola Gobbo fails in her bid to avoid appearing before a Royal Commission after claiming she was too sick
- Lawyer X Nicola Gobbo has been ordered to give evidence at royal commission
- Commissioner Margaret McMurdo did not accept her excuse she was too ill
- Gobbo must give evidence over short periods, with cross-examination limited
A police informer known as Lawyer X who ratted on gangsters has been ordered to give evidence at a royal commission despite claiming she is too sick.
Commissioner Margaret McMurdo today ordered Nicola Gobbo to give evidence over the phone on 29 January next year.
Ms Gobbo must give evidence over short periods, with cross-examination limited to accommodate her health issues and safety concerns.
Commissioner Margaret McMurdo today ordered Nicola Gobbo (pictured) to give evidence on 29 January next year
But the commissioner said she had ‘no confidence’ Ms Gobbo would comply.
If Ms Gobbo refuses to give evidence, the commission can ask for her to be charged under the Inquiries Act, with a possible maximum jail sentence of two years.
In case Ms Gobbo does not comply, the commissioner has ordered the release of transcripts of the lawyer speaking with her and her staff on the phone as backup evidence.
Ms Gobbo, who helped jail several high-profile criminals, claimed she is not mentally fit to give evidence.
The commissioner accepted the former barrister did have mental and physical health issues but believed they were not sufficient to avoid giving evidence.
‘The commission is willing to take her evidence over short periods, by telephone to accommodate her medical conditions,’ Ms McMurdo said.
The medical opinions on Ms Gobbo’s ability to give evidence were based on the accuracy of what she told her medical practitioners, the commissioner added.
Ms Gobbo (pictured with underworld figure Tony Mokbel) claimed she is not mentally fit to give evidence
‘Whilst I accept she is very unwell, I am cognisant of the fact in evidence before this commission she told her handlers of her preparedness to falsely use her medical conditions to improperly obtain an adjournment of a case to suit her own needs,’ Ms McMurdo said.
Ms Gobbo’s lawyer Rishi Nathwani had argued she was too unwell, both mentally and physically, to give evidence at the commission.
The Royal Commission into the Management of Police Informers began last year to probe police use of Ms Gobbo as an informant during Melbourne’s bloody gangland war.
Several of the criminals she helped to jail may be released if it is found their trials were not fair.
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