A former military lawyer, jailed for leaking more than 200 secret defence documents to journalists, has been granted leave to appeal.
In May, David McBride was sentenced to spend more than two years behind bars for his theft and disclosure of classified files, relating to the conduct of Australian troops in Afghanistan.
On Wednesday, ACT Supreme Court Registrar Jayne Reece granted leave for McBride's lawyers to lodge an appeal of his conviction and sentence.
Lawyers for McBride needed court approval to appeal because the application had been made out of time.
When a smiling McBride was first escorted into the packed courtroom, supporters in the public gallery clapped and yelled "good to see you" and "awesome".
The whistleblower previously pleaded guilty to three charges relating to the theft and disclosure to journalists of classified documents, which detailed alleged misconduct by Australian troops.
A later inquiry uncovered credible information of 23 incidents of potential war crimes, which involved the killing of 39 Afghans and cruel treatment of two more between 2005 and 2016.
The report found 25 soldiers were perpetrators or accessories - some on a single occasion and some on multiple.
However, McBride had leaked the documents to expose what he viewed as the "overzealous" investigation into the conduct of special forces soldiers in Afghanistan.
This decision would set in motion protracted court proceedings dating back to his arrest in 2018.
McBride's lawyers had previously argued he was acting in the public interest and was "honourable" in his intentions.
In May, Justice David Mossop sentenced McBride to five years and eight months jail with a non-parole period of 24 months for the crimes.
On Wednesday, McBride's lawyer Keiran Ginges said he expected the appeal hearing to last one day and asked for a date to be set in early March.
The matter was adjourned to confirm a date for hearing.
