Ousted Liberal MP Moira Deeming has been awarded $300,000 in damages following a defamation lawsuit against Opposition Leader John Pesutto. Justice David O’Callaghan determined that Pesutto's statements had harmed Deeming's reputation.

🚨#BREAKING: Federal Court finds John Pesutto DEFAMED Moira Deeming, awarding the ousted Liberal MP $300k

Justice finally served

Pesutto must resign

— Avi Yemini (@OzraeliAvi) December 11, 2024

Deeming sued Pesutto over comments made in a media release, a press conference, and various interviews following the Let Women Speak rally on 18 March 2023. She claimed Pesutto falsely portrayed her as a Nazi sympathiser. Pesutto had rejected this allegation.

MEDIA STATEMENT FROM MOIRA DEEMING MP

I am grateful to God for this outcome, to the Court for its careful and prompt consideration of my case and to my lawyers whose dedication, expertise and integrity is unmatched.

The Judge found that I was defamed in five separate…

— Moira Deeming MP (@MoiraDeemingMP) December 12, 2024

The judgment was delivered in the federal court on Thursday, marking the end of a long-running case that has further strained relations between the conservative and moderate wings of the Victorian Liberal party. The trial featured evidence from text messages, emails, and secret recordings.

Pesutto had compiled a "dossier" to justify Deeming’s expulsion from the Liberal party room, though she was only suspended initially as part of a compromise. However, she was later expelled for allegedly "bringing discredit" on the parliamentary team by threatening legal action against Pesutto.

During the three-week trial, Deeming's barrister, Sue Chrysanthou SC, argued that Pesutto's actions to expel Deeming were unrelated to the rally but rather her stance on sex-based rights. Chrysanthou claimed Pesutto crafted a "false narrative" that Deeming "associates with Nazis" as a pretext to remove her from the party.

Fantastic news out of Australia!

The amazing @MoiraDeemingMP — a mother of 4, and a former teacher turned politician in order to fight for our kids — has just won her defamation lawsuit against cowardly Liberal leader @JohnPesutto.

He called her a Nazi for attending a rally… pic.twitter.com/nZyd0Wp2Pp

— Billboard Chris 🇨🇦🇺🇸 (@BillboardChris) December 11, 2024

Chrysanthou noted, “While Pesutto never explicitly called Deeming a Nazi, an ordinary person would have inferred it based on his comments.”

In defence, Matthew Collins KC, Pesutto’s lawyer, dismissed Chrysanthou’s argument as a "conspiracy" and maintained that Pesutto was acting in the public interest by distancing his party from any association with Nazis.

Witnesses in the trial included Pesutto's deputy, David Southwick, and the party's upper house leader, Georgie Crozier, alongside Liberal MPs Renee Heath, Richard Riordan, and Kim Wells, who all testified in support of Deeming.

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