Former Liberal MP Moira Deeming has been awarded $300,000 in damages in her defamation lawsuit against Victorian Opposition Leader John Pesutto.
Pesutto expelled Deeming from the Victorian Liberal Party in May 2023 after “Neo-Nazis” crashed the March 18 “Let Women Speak” rally that Deeming was involved with.
On Thursday, Justice David O’Callaghan found that following the rally Pesutto conveyed multiple defamatory imputations against Deeming, suggesting she had knowingly associated with neo-Nazis and was therefore unfit to remain in the Victorian Liberal Party.
These imputations were found in various communications, including:
- A media release, which implied Deeming was unfit for the Liberal Party due to her alleged association with neo-Nazis.
- A 3AW Radio interview which conveyed that Deeming associates with Nazis, making her unfit for the party.
- An ABC interview where it was suggested that Deeming knowingly associated or sympathized with neo-Nazis and white supremacists, again rendering her unfit for the party.
- A press conference where it was conveyed that Deeming participated in a rally, working alongside others to promote what was described as an “odious agenda.”
- The expulsion motion and dossier, which conveyed that Deeming’s conduct at the rally justified her expulsion from the party and that her actions could discredit the parliament or parliamentary Liberal Party.
Justice O’Callaghan ruled that Deeming had suffered serious harm from these statements and that Pesutto’s defences were unsuccessful.
Following the ruling, Deeming released the following press release:
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 publications and that each of those also caused serious harm to my reputation. Every single one of Mr Pesutto’s defences, failed.
This judgment is a public acknowledgment that there was never any justification- legal, moral or political – for what the Opposition Leader did to me and to my family.
The organisers and attendees of the 2023 Melbourne “Let Women Speak” Rally did nothing wrong and it is shameful that they were treated without fairness or respect by so many in public office.
I will continue to fight for the rights of parents, women and children – and I know I won’t be alone.
I am pleased with this result and relieved to have been vindicated. It has been an incredibly tough 22 months for me and my family but I can now start to move forward with the judgment today clearing my name.
Thank you to everyone who stood by me and defended me despite personal and political differences and regardless of the cost – friends, strangers, opponents, Liberal members and colleagues. Thanks to everyone who prayed, wrote, donated and told the truth. And finally, thank you to my family, especially my husband.
