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Memo on Glenn Eggleton (PDF) 

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• BOARD MEMO (PDF) 

Conclusion

74. In all the circumstances, it is clear that the conduct of Travers amounted to serious professional misconduct. Accordingly a Decision under sub-clause 16. l(a)(i) of the Partnership Agreement is appropriate and necessary. . . .

91. At the Board Meeting on June 2002 the Board should make a Decision requiring Travers to leave the Partnership.

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• Pressure mounts on big-tobacco lawyers 

VICTORIAN police have sought advice from the Office of Public Prosecutions over allegations of document destruction and tainted justice in Rolah McCabe's landmark anti-smoking court case.

And the NSW fraud squad, which is investigating the same allegations, has spoken to McCabe family lawyers Slater & Gordon and The Sunday Age.

The police probe is the fourth into the actions of British American Tobacco Australia Services and its former lawyers, Clayton Utz, in the McCabe case.

Today, The Sunday Age posts on the internet controversial Clayton Utz documents that have sparked three major investigations, including one by the Director of Public Prosecutions over possible criminal charges.

NSW police are investigating allegations under sections of the Crimes Act that make it illegal to destroy anything knowing that it could be required as evidence in a judicial proceeding.

The Victorian Supreme Court found in 2002 that internal British American Tobacco documents had been destroyed, denying justice to lung cancer victim Mrs McCabe.

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• Law firm faces state contract losses 

CLAYTON Utz, the corporate law firm that defended British American Tobacco against cancer victim Rolah McCabe, may be stripped of its multimillion-dollar position on the list of firms entitled to work for the State Government.

Attorney-General Rob Hulls has written to the unit that manages the Legal Services Panel, a list of 10 firms, asking it to investigate whether Clayton Utz's position on the panel should be "reconsidered in light of … serious allegations" against two former partners of the firm.

The partners were found by an internal inquiry to have engaged in misconduct and potential perjury while acting for British American Tobacco.

The contents of the report were revealed in The Sunday Age in October. On Wednesday, Mr Hulls referred the report to the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions for investigation.

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Lawyers for big tobacco accused over McCabe case 

THE former managing partner of leading law firm Clayton Utz could face perjury charges over evidence he gave in defending a smoking damages case on behalf of a major tobacco firm.

Victorian Attorney-General Rob Hulls said he had referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions documents alleging "criminal conduct" by former Clayton Utz high-flyer Glenn Eggleton.

Mr Hulls has also referred allegations of misconduct involving Mr Eggleton and former senior Clayton Utz partner Richard Travers to the legal services commissioners of NSW and Victoria.

The allegations emerged in internal Clayton Utz documents that claim Mr Travers engaged in serious professional misconduct and Mr Eggleton gave evidence that was "potentially perjurious" while the pair were defending a tobacco company against a lawsuit lodged by a dying smoker.

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• Tobacco links set to cost lawyer 

DESPITE being cleared of wrongdoing in the disastrous Rolah McCabe tobacco litigation, former Clayton Utz lawyer Richard Travers looks set to pay an enormous price for his involvement with big tobacco.

Mr Travers has already lost a partnership in the law firm founded by his family. And he will now be subjected to a second inquiry that looks set to ignore the rule against double jeopardy.

That inquiry, which was called this week, will cover exactly the same issues that were thrown out in 2003 when Victoria's former legal ombudsman Kate Hamond investigated the conduct of Clayton Utz lawyers in the McCabe case. . . .

But doubts have now emerged about the real purpose of the material that criticises Mr Travers. Clayton Utz has described the Travers material as "a preliminary internal review" that had been prepared without information or comment from the people concerned.

It was drawn up at the height of the media frenzy triggered by the publication in April 2002 of the Eames judgment and before the exoneration by the Court of Appeal in December that year, and the legal ombudsman the following year.

A spokeswoman for the firm said there was "nothing new" in the material that had been supplied to Mr Hulls.

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BATCo Document Destruction Procedure 

DESTRUCTION OF CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS

In Millbank 3 facilities exist for the destruction of classified, i.e. Le. SECRET or RESTRICTED or other sensitive documents.

a) Office shredders located in departments throughout the building.

b) A disintegrator located in the undercroft.

c) External contract shredding through Group 4.

In determining whether a redundant document contains sensitive information holders should apply the rule of thumb of whether the contents would harm or embarrass the Company or an individual if they were to be made public or to reach the competition. The following guidelines should be followed for the destruction of redundant copies of classified or other sensitive documents in Millbank.

Wherever possible the documents should be destroyed personally by, or under the supervision of, the holder using office shredders within the department.

Where the size or bulk of the document(s) make shredding within the department impracticable, Facilities Section should be contacted with a view to arranging destruction using the disintegrator. For SECRET and other most sensitive documents a member of the Department should personally supervise this destruction.

No classified documents should leave Milibank in readable form. It follows therefore that the shredding by Group 4 should be confined to documents of unclassified and non sensitive content which nevertheless merit destruction by shredding rather than disposal as waste paper.

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rolah mc cabe 

In October 2001 Slater & Gordon commenced legal proceedings on behalf of Rolah McCabe against the second largest tobacco company in the world, British American Tobacco (formerly known as WD & HO Wills). The claim, filed in the Supreme Court of Victoria, alleged that Mrs McCabe had contracted terminal lung cancer as a result of smoking Capstan and Escort cigarettes, brands manufactured by BAT, over a 30 year period. Mrs McCabe began smoking in 1962 when she was just 12 years, long before there were any warnings on cigarette packets.

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Tobacco lawyers probed 

THE daughter of tobacco victim Rolah McCabe has welcomed a criminal probe into one of Australia's biggest law firms.

Roxanne Cowell said her family were determined to continue their long fight for justice to honour Mrs McCabe's memory.

Attorney-General Rob Hulls' decision this week to order an investigation into law firm Clayton Utz was another step in that fight, she said. Clayton Utz represented British American Tobacco in the company's Supreme Court fight to avoid paying compensation to Mrs McCabe.

Its partners could face criminal charges over allegations they misled judges and committed perjury.

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MOODIE: Lawyer fest is in season 

AS we reflect as a community on the year that was and exchange greetings and gifts, I wonder how the lawyers who act for the big tobacco companies will view their performance.

Roxanne Cowell, the daughter of the late Rolah McCabe, and employees of the Victorian Cancer Council received letters from Corrs Chambers Westgarth, lawyers for the Australian arm of the multinational tobacco company, British American Tobacco.

The letters demanded they not disclose potentially damaging material about BAT's destruction of documents and the behaviour of its lawyers in the now famous McCabe case. . . .

EVERYTHING about this case so far has confirmed the community's worst feelings about the legal system: that you get the "justice" you pay for. . . .

I really question the role of lawyers who work for tobacco companies.

What else do they get out of it other than a whole heap of money and a huge hole in their moral gut? And if you have shares in tobacco companies you might want to rethink your investments. . . .

WE can't turn a blind eye to the behaviour of BAT, nor can we ignore the intimidation of the daughter of a woman who has died from its products, or ignore the bullying of one of the most respected health groups in the country, just because BAT has so much money and power.

This case must be about justice, not money and power.

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• Law firm Clayton Utz faces criminal investigation 

ELEANOR HALL: One of the country's most prestigious law firms is facing a criminal investigation by the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions. Clayton Utz is alleged to have engaged in criminal conduct during the landmark 2002 tobacco litigation brought by the late Rolah McCabe.

Victorian Attorney General Rob Hulls has also briefed the Federal Attorney-General and several state and territory Attorneys-General about new evidence, which emerged seven weeks ago.

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Lawyers for tobacco giant investigated  

Lawyers acting for British American Tobacco (BAT) in the case against Rolah McCabe are facing claims of criminal conduct.

The Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is investigating former Clayton Utz lawyers Richard Travers and Glenn Eggleton after claims emerged against the ex-senior partners. . . .

Victorian Attorney-General Rob Hulls received copies of the allegations against the lawyers in October and said he had referred them to the DPP and the Victorian Legal Service commissioner for investigation.

"It is important that as attorney-general I don't say anything that may prejudice these independent investigations that will now take place," he told reporters.

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Lawyers for tobacco giant investigated  

Lawyers acting for British American Tobacco (BAT) in the case against Rolah McCabe are facing claims of criminal conduct.

The Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is investigating former Clayton Utz lawyers Richard Travers and Glenn Eggleton after claims emerged against the ex-senior partners.

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• Litigation practices under scrutiny as Attorney-General lights up 

THE move by Rob Hulls for a full investigation into the behaviour of Clayton Utz's lawyers in the McCabe case could throw a harsh glare over the entire legal profession.

Investigations by the Director of Public Prosecutions and legal regulators in two states will be the most intense examination of the activities of senior lawyers in litigation undertaken in recent times. All lawyers will examine the results, and hopefully, will learn something about decency.

Central to the investigations is one big question: did Clayton Utz's lawyers cross the line? Were they too close to their long-term client, cigarette maker British American Tobacco Australia Services?

Clayton Utz's own inquiry - details of which were published in The Sunday Age seven weeks ago - provides an insight into the gladiatorial culture of tobacco companies and their legal guns.

The documents Hulls has referred for investigation include Clayton Utz's own inquiry into its lawyers. . . .

Ron Merkel, QC, on behalf of Mrs McCabe's lawyers, Slater & Gordon, last week told the NSW Supreme Court that the judgement that went against Mrs McCabe may have been "procured fraudulently and by an unfair hearing".

The investigations announced yesterday by Mr Hulls can only help the family's long fight for justice.

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Firm's misconduct findings with DPP 

SENSATIONAL findings of misconduct and possible perjury against former senior partners of one of Australia's leading law firms will be investigated by the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions and legal regulators.

The Attorney-General, Rob Hulls, has referred to the DPP the findings of an internal inquiry conducted by Clayton Utz into the strategy it used to defend a tobacco company against a lawsuit launched by a Victorian smoker, Rolah McCabe, in 2002.

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