The Jersey Evening Post has won the right to challenge the secrecy surrounding a multi-million pound civil court case involving the state of Qatar.

The Post is arguing for the lifting, in the interests of open justice, of reporting restrictions on a civil action relating to millions of pounds deposited in three Jersey-registered trusts.

The case was shrouded in secrecy after Bailiff, Sir Philip Bailache, agreed to hear it in camera with the press and public barred. Reporting restrictions were imposed following a front-page article about the existence of the proceedings and the secrecy surrounding them last November.

The case was discontinued in May but the Post has continued its legal challenge in order to obtain access to the court papers and transcripts of the hearings.

Its representation is now expected to be heard on October 14.

Qatar’s minister for foreign affairs had tried to stop the Post’s representation being heard, arguing that because the civil court case had been discontinued reporting restrictions on it cannot be lifted.

But the Post argued that the decisions to hear the case in camera and to impose reporting restrictions were made without it having an opportunity to be heard – despite the fact that the orders would be detrimental to the interests of the newspaper.

It said that in such circumstances it would be contrary to the interests of open justice to prevent the paper from challenging those decisions.

At the hearing on October 14 the Post will argue for the lifting of the decision to impose both those restrictions and the decision to hold the case in camera in the interests of open justice.

But the Sheik claims that even if the paper was to win this stage of the appeal, the judgement would only apply to future hearings meaning the original case would still remain secret.

However, transcripts could be released to the paper if the court agreed.

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