David Arthur Hanna has been found guilty of destroying documents after dumping dozens of boxes of material that potentially could have been evidence in the royal commission.

As state president in April 2014, Hanna instructed colleagues to cover CCTV cameras at the CFMEU's Brisbane office before boxes were moved to his home before they were dumped at a tip.

He then asked a staff member to get rid of what she believed was a receipt for the cost of "burying" documents with an excavator.

A Brisbane District Court jury on Monday rejected Hanna's claim his actions were part of an office clean-up irrelevant to the royal commission.

They found him guilty of a single count of destroying, concealing or mutilating documents - after seven hours of deliberations.

Hanna, 54, was handed a nine-month jail sentence but has been released after paying a $500 good behaviour bond that he will be subject to for the next two years.

Justice Julie Ryrie said Hanna's actions "had the potential to negatively impact on commission's important function".

But she acknowledged there was no concrete evidence pointing to the documents' relevance to the royal commission, nor that he had anything to personally gain from destroying them.

"You were simply reckless. That is, you didn't sufficiently turn your mind to (the royal commission)," she said.

"You were one of the senior leaders, therefore by way of example, you have failed your union in bringing it into disrepute by ... being reckless when you should have known better."

Australian Associated Press