I will be happy to accept any wager from any party prepared to bet that Mr Ettridge will succeed.

While Mr Ettridge has every right to approach the Registry of the Supreme Court, I can't see how his action is going anywhere except towards a substantial costs order against him.

The CMC in Queensland reviewed the substantial matters and reported in 2004

Download Hanson-ettridge-inquiry-2003

The Australian Electoral Commission enquired into the trust fund entity at the centre of Mr Abbott's involvement and found:

AEC conclusion:

The AEC has determined this issue based on all the information available to it. On the basis of that information and consistent with the trust deed, the AEC has now concluded that the Australians for Honest Politics trust fund did not meet the definition of associated entity under the Act. Thus, the AEC's decision in June 1999 – that the Australians for Honest Politics trust fund did not constitute an associated entity – was and remains correct.

Date: 15 July 2004

It is unusual for the court registry to take an application such as this on, it will be interesting to see what costs the respondent Tony Abbott and 3 well-heeled gentlemen in Peter Coleman, Trevor Kennedy and Harold Clough incur in defending the action at the Directions Hearing.