BHP wins suppression orders in injured coal miner case
BHP won court decisions Michael West Media taking down stories before any evidence has been tested in court. Stephanie Tran reports.
Federal court judge ordered Michael West Media decided to remove two articles from its website and suppress a cross-claim brought by injured former BHP coal miner Simon Turner.
Within the scope of the order, MWM It is required to remove public content that “discloses, references or contains any part of the Cross-Claim,” including two articles published earlier this month.
The first article, published on May 15, was titled “BHP wants us to be silenced NOW. Federal Court says no.” The second, published on May 25, was titled “Coal fee theft. BHP lawyer MinterEllison faces conflict of interest allegation.”
Needham also ordered that Turner’s cross-claim notice and cross-claim statement filed on May 13, 2026, not be published or disclosed except by the parties and their legal representatives until the final suppression application is determined.
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The cases stem from a case linked to a wage theft case involving those who hired paid workers at BHP-operated coal mines.
On April 17, 2026, Judge Needham dismissed Turner’s lawsuit against BHP and issued sweeping shutdown orders, court documents show. Turner appealed the decision, but a hearing date has not yet been set.
At yesterday’s hearing the court was told BHP had changed its solicitor, replacing Trent Forno with MinterEllison partner Michael Fletcher.
The matter will return to court on June 4, 2026 at 10:15 a.m. and the court is expected to decide whether final restraining orders will be issued.
BHP seeks emergency closure order in lawsuit against coal miner and MWM broadcaster
Stephanie is a journalist with a background in both law and journalism. He worked at The Guardian and as a paralegal, where he assisted Crikey’s defense team in the high-profile libel case brought by Lachlan Murdoch. His reporting has been recognized nationally, earning him the 2021 Guardians of Democracy Award for Student Investigative Reporting and a nomination for the 2021 Walkley Student Journalist of the Year Award.
