Palace letters

[4] The National Archives had spent a total of $1.6 million unsuccessfully contesting Hocking's case seeking public access to the Palace letters.

[7] Queen Elizabeth II and her Australian representative Governor-General Sir John Kerr exchanged more than 200 letters, which are now held in the National Archives of Australia.

[9] They cover the bulk of Kerr's term in office, from 15 August 1974 to 5 December 1977, and it was an agreed fact in Hocking's Federal Court action that most of them "address topics relating to the official duties and responsibilities of the Governor-General" and some "take the form of reports to The Queen about the events of the day in Australia".

[10] There had been a long debate regarding whether the Queen might have known about the machinations of the dismissal, and it was thought that the contents of the 'Palace letters' could clarify and possibly settle that issue.

[14][15] In January 2020, Sir Edward Young, Elizabeth's private secretary stated a preference for "all vice-regal letters to remain sealed until at least five years after her reign ends and for him to maintain a sole veto on whether they should be released at all".

[6][21] In January 2022, the National Archives of Australia released a further cache of over 2,000 pages of vice-regal correspondence between six other governors-general and the Queen, from Lord Casey in 1966 to Sir William Deane in 2001, as a result of the High Court's ruling in the Palace letters case.

[23] The letters revealed that Kerr had discussed the prospect of dismissing the government with Prince Charles and the Queen, several weeks before he did so, and that he was prepared to disregard the draft legal background of the Australian solicitor-general, Sir Maurice Byers that rejection of supply does not "[compel] the Crown's representative ... to intervene".

[27] The letters released in January 2022 revealed Kerr's private hostility towards the Whitlam government, including criticism of its policies and appointments.