The Turnbull government has asked the High Court to swiftly deal with the question of whether a slew of MPs and senators were validly elected, urging the case be heard in September rather than October.
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In a submission lodged with the High Court on Monday, Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue, on behalf of Attorney-General George Brandis, has admitted that Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce and former cabinet minister Matthew Canavan are, or were, citizens of New Zealand and Italy respectively.
Taxpayers will pick up the bill for the five MPs now involved in the impending High Court hearing, which is usual practice but likely to run into the tens of the thousands of dollars even if the case is dealt with quickly.
But one of Australia's top constitutional experts, UNSW professor George Williams, said the rapid timeline proposed by the government is unlikely to be met as in at least two of the cases – Senator Canavan and One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts – the facts are likely to be in dispute.
The court is due to hold the initial directions hearing on Thursday.
As recently as Sunday, Senator Brandis had said that "we hope to get the matter before the court as soon as possible. I think realistically that may be in the first fortnight of October."
But the submission from the Solicitor-General has proposed that the cases of Mr Joyce, Senator Canavan, Senator Roberts and former Greens senators Larissa Waters and Scott Ludlam be examined in its second sitting week, on September 13 and 14.
The submission argues there is a "compelling public interest in the references being determined as quickly as possible" given the case deals with multiple sitting MPs.
In seeking to appear at any hearings, the Attorney-General suggested affidavits be prepared which lay out "all of the relevant facts that relate to the person's citizenship", including "all documents in their possession, custody or control that relate to their citizenship status".
That would include Senator Roberts' documents, which he has often referred to possessing, but has refused to show publicly.
The expedited timetable put forward by the government would see all documents and submissions filed by September 11, with the hearings listed for the next week.
Professor Williams told Fairfax Media that, for example, one of the seven High Court justices may need to be appointed to make findings of fact in the Canavan and Roberts case – as occurred in the High Court case of former senator Bob Day – because the evidence given in those MPs' affidavits may be contested by unknown parties.
"The critical test is whether there is agreement [on the facts of each individual MP's case] between the Commonwealth and whichever parties are opposing its position. If there is agreement, the matters can be determined quickly. Where there is not, things will be much slower," he said.
"Ambitious is the word I would use. There may be further complications depending on which parties appear and what positions they take."
It will not be clear until Thursday which other parties have been given leave by the court to appear and potentially contest the facts as presented by one or more MPs.
It is possible that at Thursday's directions hearing the High Court could also split how the MPs' cases are heard.
Nationals deputy leader Fiona Nash and Nick Xenophon Team leader senator Nick Xenophon are, also, likely to be referred to the High Court when Parliament next sits in September and the High Court case will likely have direct implications for this pair, too.
The federal government has been rocked by the revelations that several of its MPs are or may be be dual nationals, which is forbidden under the constitution, and is blaming the ongoing fiasco for causing it damage in the polls.
Under section 44, part (i) of the Australian constitution, a person is disqualified from standing for Parliament if they are "under any acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience, or adherence to a foreign power, or is a subject or a citizen or entitled to the rights or privileges of a subject or a citizen of a foreign power".
