Gina Rinehart, Asia’s
richest woman, has failed to persuade an Australian judge to have a family
dispute over a multibillion-dollar trust resolved by an arbitrator in private,
according to a report from Bloomberg.

Supreme Court Justice Patricia Bergin in Sydney has dismissed Rinehart’s request. The news
service said the judge’s written ruling wasn’t immediately available to allow
some commercially sensitive information to be omitted from the public version
of the decision at Rinehart’s request.

The case raises the issue to what extent can disputes over
trusts, particularly when large sums are at stake, can or should be held in
private to protect beneficiaries and other interested parties.

John Hancock, Rinehart’s only son, and her eldest daughter
Bianca sued to remove their mother from managing a family trust, claiming she
breached her duty, failed to act honestly and has a conflict of interest.
Gina Rinehart is the world’s 38th richest person with a net worth of $19 billion
(source: Bloomberg Billionaires Index).

The dispute may still go to mediation before a trial next
month, the judge said.

Christopher Withers, Hancock’s lawyer, said at the hearing
that he wouldn’t object to mediation as long as it occurs in parallel with
trial preparation. Bruce McClintock, Rinehart’s lawyer, proposed three days of
mediation to be held from 23 September to 25 September. Bergin tentatively
agreed to delay the start of the trial by a week to 8 October.