Attorney-General George Brandis and the government's chief legal adviser are set for a public showdown over allegations Senator Brandis misled Parliament, after both men agreed to front an explosive Senate inquiry into the claims.
The country's two most senior lawyers are locked in an extraordinary brawl over a binding direction issued by Senator Brandis before the election requiring all ministers, including the Prime Minister, to obtain his permission before seeking advice from Solicitor-General Justin Gleeson, SC.
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Did he mislead parliament?
Labor prosecutes its allegation that Attorney-General George Brandis has broken one of the cardinal rules of parliament.
In a submission last week to a Senate inquiry, Mr Gleeson flatly denied claims by Senator Brandis in Parliament that he was consulted about the direction and said he would have opposed it "in the strongest terms".
It prompted calls from Labor for Senator Brandis to resign for misleading Parliament.
In a rebuke that may set the stage for a censure motion, a majority of the Senate supported an urgent motion by Labor on Monday that Senator Brandis had failed to uphold the standards expected of his office by "undermining ... public confidence in legal administration within the government".
Under heated questioning in the Senate, Senator Brandis resisted calls to stand down and insisted he had not misled the Senate.
He said there was "plainly a difference of views" as to whether a discussion the men had at a meeting on November 30 last year "constituted a consultation".
"He has one view; I have another," Senator Brandis said.
Labor senator Penny Wong said the two versions "cannot stand" and accused Senator Brandis of "a power grab" designed to "control the flow of advice".
"This is an open and shut case; a clear example of a minister misleading the Senate," Senator Wong said.
Both men have now agreed to appear on Friday at a Senate inquiry examining whether Mr Gleeson was consulted about the change. Senator Brandis is slated to appear first.
Legal experts have expressed concern the direction by Senator Brandis could see Mr Gleeson, who provides apolitical, independent advice on major issues and appears in high-profile cases on behalf of the Commonwealth, "frozen out" of advising the government.
Fairfax Media has previously revealed Senator Brandis sought the advice of David Bennett, QC, a former solicitor-general during the Howard government, rather than relying on advice from Mr Gleeson.
Greens Senator Nick McKim accused Senator Brandis of "shopping around" for politically convenient legal advice.
Labor's Murray Watt, a member of the Senate committee inquiry into the feud, said in Parliament the direction was an "unprecedented attack" on the Solicitor-General.
But Liberal senator Linda Reynolds said the Senate inquiry was a "political witch-hunt". Her colleague Chris Back said Mr Gleeson did not have a "power of veto" over the government and the Attorney-General's Department had advised Senator Brandis had met his legal obligation to consult Mr Gleeson about the change.