Northern Territory Shadow Attorney-General Chansey Paech has called for the government to make public in full correspondence from the NT's Chief Justice regarding political interference in the Supreme Court.
The ABC reports that a leaked email from Chief Justice Michael Grant AO to the Attorney-General's Department acting chief executive Leonique Swart on October 8 revealed he had received advice the courts had been blocked from sending a press release to the media.
In the email, Chief Justice Grant said he had "been advised that you have recently and unilaterally directed the Court's media liaison officer not to send a communication to The Australian newspaper, which I requested him to send".
He also said he had been told there was a new, unwritten policy in place requiring the court to have all media communications approved by the Department's chief executive.
The chief justice wrote that he was "extremely disturbed that you have purported to interfere with the Court's independence and operations", and called on Ms Swart to "confirm without delay" she would stop the alleged interference, the ABC reports.
"The Supreme Court is not part of the Attorney-General's Department," he said.
"Rather, the Attorney-General's Department provides services to the Supreme Court. Until recently, the separation of powers issues were understood and respected."
Mr Paech, an Arrernte and Gurindji man and the member for Gwoja, said reports that the Chief Justice accused the Country Liberal Government of interfering in court operations are "deeply concerning".
"The Attorney-General's department is at the centre of those claims, and Territorians deserve a clear explanation. Attorney-General Marie-Clare Boothby's integrity is again now under serious scrutiny," he said.
Earlier this year, the Attorney-General failed to publicly disclose a close family connection to Jake Danby, a man who received no jail time after killing an Aboriginal man in a hit and run, despite publicly commenting on the case.
"It's her department, her responsibility, and Territorians deserve to know what really happened," Mr Paech said on Saturday.
"This follows recent questions about the Attorney-General's own judgment and integrity, and Territorians have every right to expect higher standards from the person responsible for upholding the law.
"If there's nothing to hide, the CLP should release the full correspondence to make clear who authorised the interference and why did the Attorney-General make the request. Judicial independence is not negotiable, and Territorians expect their government to act with honesty and integrity."
An NT Courts spokesperson told the ABC the leaked email "was a result of something of a misunderstanding" and there was no policy in place to moderate court communications.
"Once the Chief Justice was made aware of that, the matter was satisfactorily resolved," the spokesperson said.
However, when asked to clarify what the misunderstanding was and how it was resolved, the Attorney-General's Department would not elaborate.
Instead, the spokesperson said the communications between Ms Swart and the chief justice were confidential and not for public release.
