Opposition leader John Pesutto has called on the Victorian government to reopen the special investigator’s office amid fresh legal action from the woman at the centre of the Lawyer X scandal.

Former gangland barrister Nicola Gobbo is reportedly seeking millions of dollars in compensation from Victoria Police in a lawsuit long kept secret.

The lawsuit, revealed on Friday after a suppression order was lifted, alleges officers put her safety at risk when they used her as a police informer.

She claims her unmasking as Informer 3838 and “Lawyer X” has damaged her health and career.

The barrister is seeking “exemplary damages” and hopes the litigation will prevent others from being subjected to the same treatment.

A spokeswoman for the Victorian government declined to comment on Ms Gobbo’s legal claim. “As the matter is before the court it would be inappropriate to comment,” she said.

It follows a controversial move this week by the state government to disband The Office of the Special Investigator, which was tasked with probing the Lawyer X scandal.

The Special Investigator, ex-High Court Judge Geoffrey Nettle, three times asked the Office of Public Prosecutions to bring charges against unnamed former and current senior VicPol officers, including for perjury.

Each of Nettle’s requests was rejected by Director of Public Prosecutions Kerri Judd, who informed Nettle that she regarded convictions as unlikely due to the extended periods since the alleged offences.

Coalition critics have noted a much greater period elapsed between accusations against the late Cardinal George Pell and his prosecution.

Mr Pesutto on Saturday claimed the decision to close the office was politically motivated and called for it to be reinstated.

“Nicola Gobbo pointing to litigation suggests that out of that litigation may come the need to refer matters to law enforcement agencies for prosecutions,” he told reporters.

“But that can’t happen if the Andrews government gets away with shutting down the operations of the Special Investigator … It’s wrong, we need to get to the truth of this matter.”

The move to close the office means no one will be charged over the Lawyer X saga, despite more than $100 million having been spent on a 2018 royal commission into the management of police informants.

Special investigator and former High Court justice Geoffrey Nettle said the continuation of his probe would be a waste of time because of constant rejections from Director of Public Prosecutions Kerri Judd.

The office was established in 2021 after the multi-million dollar royal commission.

-AAP