Lawyers for Essendon Football Club's former high-performance coach Dean Robinson have been granted access to documents involving a meeting where the issue of blaming "rogue operators" for the supplements scandal was allegedly discussed.
Mr Robinson, nicknamed "The Weapon", is suing the Bombers for up to $2 million, claiming he was made the scapegoat for the scandal after being stood down by the club in February 2013.
Barrister Gideon Boas told Supreme Court Justice Jack Forrest on Monday that Mr Robinson's legal team had subpoenaed Essential Media Communications and its director Liz Lukin, who worked as a media relations consultant for Essendon before she resigned in July 2013.
Mr Boas was seeking any documents, notes or text messages related to a meeting some time in March 2013 when Ms Lukin allegedly told high-ranking Essendon officials, including the then club chairman David Evans and chief executive Ian Robson, of a proposed strategy to blame "rogue operators" for the supplements scandal.
He said a former Essendon employee, strength scientist Suki Hobson, had been at the meeting and was upset by what had been discussed.
Ms Hobson claimed that when it was suggested the club should be more concerned over what actually happened, Ms Lukin replied: "No, it won't help us moving forward".
Mr Boas said Mr Robinson was identified as someone who could take the fall. Lawyer Simona Gory, for Essential Media Communications, told the court the subpoenas were a fishing exercise and the company should not have to produce any documents.
But Justice Forrest ruled the documents were relevant to Mr Robinson's claim that he had been unfairly stood down without explanation.
The judge said Essendon's management of the supplements saga was integral to Mr Robinson's case and ordered the documents be produced by September 11. A likely trial date for the case is November 15.
Mr Robinson filed a writ against the club in October last year claiming losses of $1.2 million plus damages, interest and costs.
He had been employed as the club's high-performance coach from August 25, 2011, to July 16, 2013, earning $290,000 a year plus possibly an extra $30,000 from the club's sponsors. His contract was due to expire on October 31, 2014.
In an earlier court hearing, Mr Robinson's legal team said he had agreed, after being stood down on full pay, not to make any statements against the club, while for the following six months the club "completely denigrated him" and blamed him for everything that occurred over the supplements scandal.
Mr Robinson claimed he had co-operated fully with the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority investigation during five days of interviews in 2013, and incurred significant costs hiring lawyers during these interviews.
ASADA issued show-cause notices in June to 34 serving and former Bombers players, accusing them of anti-doping rule breaches.
Essendon and suspended coach James Hird took ASADA to the Federal Court arguing last year's investigation was unlawful which meant the show-cause notices should be voided. Justice John Middleton will hand down his decision at a later date after a three-day trial was held last month.
In response to Mr Robinson's writ, the club claimed he failed to put in place an "adequate process" to ensure substances administered to players in 2011 and 2012 did not contravene the anti-doping code, were approved by the World Anti-Doping Agency, and would not harm the health and safety of its players.
Essendon claims he had "direct responsibility" for sports scientist Stephen Dank's conduct, and that as the club's "primary source" of supplements knowledge it was his job to ensure the program was safe and legal.
