Victoria
Nicola Gobbo compensation claim thrown out of court
Former police informant Nicola Gobbo has had her compensation lawsuit against the state of Victoria dismissed by a court.
Former police informant Nicola Gobbo has had her compensation lawsuit against the state of Victoria dismissed by a court. Ms Gobbo, the former criminal defence barrister widely known as Lawyer X, was seeking at least $800,000 in damages over allegations that Victoria Police officers groomed her to become a confidential source.
According to wire reports, Ms Gobbo argued that officers had groomed and manipulated her in late 2005 to act as an informant against her own criminal law clients. Her legal team contended that this conduct by the state's police force caused her significant and long lasting personal and professional harm.
The court, however, ultimately rejected the compensation claim. The ruling means the state of Victoria will not be required to pay the substantial damages sought by the high profile former lawyer. Specific legal reasons for the court's decision to throw out the case were not immediately detailed in the initial wire reports, and the state government has not yet released a formal response to the ruling.
The relationship between Ms Gobbo and Victoria Police has been the subject of intense public scrutiny for several years. A subsequent royal commission previously investigated the police force's use of informants, particularly focusing on Ms Gobbo's double life. Her actions as an informant during the Melbourne gangland wars compromised numerous high profile criminal convictions, leading to several legal challenges and overturned verdicts over the following decade.
Observers will now watch to see if Ms Gobbo seeks to appeal the court's decision or pursue alternative legal avenues.
This report draws on original reporting by Wire report.
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