THE LAW Council of Australia welcomed news that a case contesting the US Government’s authority to detain Australian David Hicks as a terrorist suspect was to go before the US Supreme Court this week.

Set to be heard on Wednesday this week, the case was an important one in uniting Hicks with his family, according to Law Council president Bob Gotterson.

“While I do not wish to speculate on material before the US Supreme Court, I am pleased to see that the judges will consider whether the Australian detainee can access the US justice system,” he said.

Hicks was seeking to establish that a US court did have jurisdiction to rule on the unlawfulness of a detainee’s ongoing detention. Previously, the US Government argued that because Cuba was outside the territorial waters of the US, the courts could not hear such matters. If his case succeeds, Hicks could bring an application in a lower US court arguing for his release. The decision by the Supreme Court is expected to be heard in June.