The Church of Scientology is to discontinue its High Court action against the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation.
The national spokesman for the church, the Reverend Andrew Youngman, said yesterday that the church had achieved its primary object of ensuring that ASIO was subject to judicial review.
It had been seeking a declaration against ASIO to stop it from gathering intelligence and passing on information about the church.
The court ruled last month that, as stated, the case was bad. It gave the church 21 days to amend its statement of claim. But in doing so the four judges, in varying degrees, said that ASIO's actions were open to judicial review.
Mr Youngman said that after discussions with lawyers the church had found it would have problems in presenting some of its evidence.
It would now assert bureaucratic and political pressure to get periodic independent reviews of ASIO. It would announce details of that campaign next year.