Politicians are “rarely nice to each other” and go out of their way to harm the reputation of others, a lawyer for former Senator David Leyonhjelm has told the Full Court in appealing a $120,000 damages bill for defamatory comments he was found to have made about Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young.
A Sydney-based childcare centre that sent an allegedly defamatory email to 35 people has won its appeal of a $238,000 damages award, with an appeals court calling the figure “manifestly excessive” and questioning the “fundamental approach to damages” in defamation cases in NSW.
Former senator David Leyonhjelm is appealing a ruling that socked him with a $120,000 damages bill in a defamation case brought by Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, and has hired a new solicitor to bring the challenge.
Former senator David Leyonhjelm used a settlement offer as another platform to attack Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young ahead of her win in a defamation case, a court has heard.
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has been awarded $120,000 in damages after suing former senator David Leyonhjelm, with a judge finding there was no justification for defamatory commments he made to the media and that he acted with malice.
Facing cross-examination on the second day of her defamation hearing against former Senator David Leyonhjelm, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young denied she suggested all men were collectively responsible for violence against women when she said “men behave like morons and like pigs” in a television interview.
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young was close to tears Monday as she told the Federal Court on the first day of trial in her defamation case against former Liberal Democrat Senator David Leyonhjelm that she felt like she was “being punished for standing up for herself”.
Leading defamation barrister Bruce McClintock, SC, has stepped down from representing cricketer Chris Gayle as an appeal by three media organisations against a $326,000 payout gets locked in for a June hearing.
Actor Geoffrey Rush is seeking to suppress an amended defence by Nationwide News, arguing that if they’re made public the amendments could cause him “irreparable harm”.