Federal Attorney-General George Brandis has withdrawn the legal direction at the heart of a bitter brawl with the former Solicitor-General, just hours before the Senate was likely to vote it down.

The Federal Opposition appeared to have enough support to have the direction disallowed in the Upper House, after the Greens, Nick Xenophon Team and crossbench Senator Derryn Hinch indicated they would vote it down.

It was due to be debated in the Senate this afternoon.

But the Attorney-General said he made the decision to repeal the direction because he wanted to discuss the matter afresh with whoever is next appointed as the nation’s second law officer.

“When the former Solicitor-General, Mr Gleeson resigned on the 24th October, it was very clear to me that a new Solicitor-General would need to be appointed,” Senator Brandis told the Senate during Question Time.

“I decided then that when the new Solicitor-General was appointed, obviously as a matter of courtesy to who that person may be, I would have a talk to them on how they would wish to be briefed.

“It seemed to me that one of the things we would discuss was the legal services direction, which no doubt the incoming Solicitor-General may have views on.”

The public battle reached its crescendo during a fiery Senate committee hearing last month, when Justin Gleeson SC complained the order from Senator Brandis restricted access to his expert legal advice and curtailed his ability to offer the Government and public service frank and fearless legal advice.

He also said the Attorney-General had not consulted him on key issues of national importance, such as anti-terror legislation.

Mr Gleeson resigned from his position less than a fortnight later, arguing his relationship with Senator Brandis was “irretrievably broken”.

Senator Brandis had argued he was merely trying to fix a procedural issue by requiring all requests for Mr Gleeson’s opinions to come through his office first, and the argument should not have escalated.

A Senate report found the Attorney-General misled parliament. Photo: AAP

“I have said all along I regard this as a matter of administrative housekeeping,” Senator Brandis said.

“I think it is the greatest confected storm in a tea cup that I have ever seen. It does not change the law.”

Earlier this week, a Labor and Greens dominated Senate committee criticised Senator Brandis for his actions, and demanded the upper house disallow the direction or Senator Brandis immediately withdraw it.

Shadow Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said the repeal of the direction came after months of “blustering, posturing and lying” by the Attorney-General.

“This is the direction which George Brandis has been defending for months — arguing that he was simply bringing the Solicitor-General’s procedures in line with the law, that Mr Gleeson had asked for it, that it caused no trouble at all,” Mr Dreyfus said.

“Now, just hours before the direction was set to be disallowed by the Senate, George Brandis has backed down and done it himself.

“It shows us that this direction was only ever about getting rid of Justin Gleeson.”
Expressions of interest to become the next Solicitor-General close tomorrow.

– ABC