Tom Phillips injunction: Media gag order to be argued in court today

An urgent suppression order preventing media, police and Oranga Tamariki from sharing certain information about the Tom Phillips case will be argued in court today.

The gag order was granted on Monday evening, shortly after the Phillips children were rescued from a remote campsite in the Waikato backcountry.

The High Court granted an injunction following an oral application from top lawyer Linda Clark on behalf of Julia Phillips, the mother of Tom Phillips.

It is due to be fully argued in the High Court at Wellington at 2.15pm.

Jayda, 12, Maverick, 10, and Ember, 9, were in hiding for four years in the wilderness with their fugitive father before things came to a dramatic head on Monday.

Phillips was finally cornered on a quad bike with one of his children following a burglary at a farm supplies store in Piopio. The incident escalated into an armed stand-off with police, which ended in his death. A police officer was critically injured after Phillips shot him multiple times, including in the head.

The remaining children were found safe after a frantic search and are now in the care of Oranga Tamariki.

Tom Phillips, top left, and his children first came to national attention when they disappeared in September 2021. Photo / Supplied

What is an injunction?

An injunction is an order made by a Court, usually to stop someone from doing something.

In the case of Phillips, the injunction prohibits media, police and Oranga Tamariki from publishing certain details related to the case.

Linda Clark is now a lawyer and partner at Dentons. Photo / Q+A

Who is the lawyer?

Linda Clark is a partner at Dentons, specialising in public law, regulatory issues, media law and defamation.

Earlier this year, Clark took a temporary leave as a TVNZ board director, as she represented former deputy police commissioner Jevon McSkimming.

McSkimming was granted an injunction to stop media organisations from publishing certain details of the criminal investigation that he faced earlier this year.

Initially, news media companies could not report that the injunction existed – a non-publication order that is sometimes referred to as a “super injunction”.

Clark is a former journalist who left the profession in 2006 to study law.

She even had a high-profile stint as political editor for TVNZ.

Clark has also represented various other well-known clients on a range of matters, including helping negotiate Duncan Garner‘s contract for the AM show and Clarke Gayford in a defamation case against the NZME radio station, Kick.

Clark declined to comment on the Phillips case when approached by the Herald.

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