Latest news with #JohnPesutto
The Guardian
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Bankruptcy notice lodged against John Pesutto after he fails to pay fellow Liberal Moira Deeming $2.3m
Lawyers for Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming have initiated bankruptcy proceedings against former state opposition leader John Pesutto after he failed to meet a deadline to pay her $2.3m in legal costs. The upper house MP's lawyers on Monday lodged a bankruptcy notice on Monday after Pesutto failed to pay the costs ordered by the federal court in May. The court in December found he repeatedly defamed Deeming by falsely implying she sympathised with neo-Nazis and white supremacists. The notice provides Pesutto with a further 21 days to pay the remaining amount, enter into a payment agreement or face bankruptcy. The deadline for Pesutto to pay the costs was Friday but sources close to the Hawthorn MP said he was he was unable to raise the full amount by that date, with about two-thirds still outstanding. Pesutto has already paid Deeming $300,000 in damages plus $15,000 in interest If he is bankrupted, it would disqualify him from being a member of parliament and trigger a byelection in his seat of Hawthorn, which the Liberal MP holds by a slim margin of 1.74%. Pesutto on Monday took to X to confirm the 'issuing of the bankruptcy notice'. 'I will be doing everything possible over the next 21 days to pay the amount ordered by the federal court,' Pesutto wrote. 'I will continue performing my work as the member for Hawthorn, and I reiterate my wish to do so for as long as the people of my electorate will have me.' When approached by Guardian Australia, Deeming sent a statement earlier provided to the Herald Sun. The upper house MP said issuing the bankruptcy notice was not a decision she took lightly 'nor with any sense of triumph'. 'My goal is simple, to ensure that I am reimbursed so that I can repay that loan as I promised I would,' Deeming said. 'The possibility of a costly by-election in the seat of Hawthorn is not something I welcome. But retain it or lose it, the greater threat to the Liberal party is not the pain and cost of pursuing justice, but the dishonour and shame of failing to uphold it.' 'No man is above the law.' On X, Deeming denied she was intentionally seeking to damage the Liberal party. 'If you interpret a politician being held to account as some kind of political or democratic disaster, maybe you are the problem - not me,' Deeming posted. In the event of Pesutto's bankruptcy, Deeming's lawyers have also indicated they will seek to recover costs from third parties – and will apply for subpoenas to compel him to disclose communications with his donors. Pesutto's situation has sparked discussions of a possible loan from the party's investment vehicle, the Cormack Foundation, which has been reluctant so far to provide financial support to the former leader. Former Liberal premier, Jeff Kennett, lambasted the party's administrative committee and the Cormack Foundation for failing to 'support its own'. Kennett said a loan from Cormack wasn't his preferred option, but it would at least prevent Pesutto's bankruptcy. 'My preference is to be generous. Even if they give him a loan, he will still be indebted for the rest of his life. They [Pesutto's family] don't deserve it,' he said. 'My preference is the organisations within the liberal party that have the capital - and substantial amounts of capital - said 'we may not agree with you but we are not going to put you and your family in a situation where you are potentially bankrupt.''
AU Financial Review
3 hours ago
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Kennett issues 11th hour plea to save Pesutto from bankruptcy
Former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett has issued an 11th-hour plea to the Liberal Party's powerful administrative committee to save ex-leader John Pesutto from being bankrupted by a multimillion dollar defamation debt to colleague Moira Deeming. Kennett's letter to the 19-member committee came as Deeming reportedly filed a creditor's petition with the Federal Court on Monday after Pesutto failed to pay her $2.3 million in legal costs following her successful defamation case against him.
Sky News AU
2 days ago
- Business
- Sky News AU
John Pesutto facing bankruptcy proceedings
Former Victorian Opposition Leader John Pesutto is facing bankruptcy proceedings after he missed the deadline for more than $2 million in legal costs to MP Moira Deeming. Senior Liberal party figures were unable to reach an eleventh-hour bid to negotiate a deal to cover the debt - following her successful defamation case. Ms Deeming's lawyers are planning to issue a bankruptcy notice to the former state liberal leader after he raised only one-third of the debt. The party's administrative committee could reportedly meet on the weekend to discuss a possible loan to Mr Pesutto.
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
After a week of spectacular self-sabotage, the Victorian Liberal party's pain is only just beginning
It was meant to be the Victorian Liberals' week. Instead, the party – now almost synonymous with political self-sabotage – has imploded once again. And it's likely only going to get worse from here as the countdown officially begins for former leader John Pesutto to pay the $2.3m in legal fees he owes Moira Deeming or face bankruptcy after he was found in December to have defamed her. 'The pain for John may be about to end, but the pain for others may be just about to begin,' one of Pesutto's supporters warned. The week had started with a sense of optimism from Pesutto's successor as opposition leader, Brad Battin, and his team. After machete-wielding rival gangs sent a shopping centre into lockdown at the weekend, the Labor government on Monday rushed to ban the sale of the knives within 48 hours. It was a move the Liberals had advocated for since 2023, giving them a rare 'we told you so' moment. They also had their budget reply on Tuesday, headlined by a policy designed to win back young voters: abolishing stamp duty for properties under $1m. But whatever momentum the Liberals were hoping to build vanished before the shadow treasurer stood up to deliver his speech. Earlier on Tuesday, a party room meeting was called to discuss what – if anything – was being done by Battin to avert a byelection in the seat of Hawthorn – which will occur if Pesutto is bankrupted and therefore disqualified from parliament. The issue of the byelection – which many Liberals believe the party would lose – was raised by the Sandringham MP, Brad Rowswell, who had attempted to discuss it during a shadow cabinet meeting on Monday but was told it was a matter for the broader party room. After facing criticism that such a discussion would distract from the party's messaging, Rowswell deferred the discussion altogether. But the matter still made headlines and overshadowed the budget response. A Liberal MP loyal to Battin said it was an intentional move to 'destabilise' the leader, while a detractor said it was a 'valid question everyone has been asking'. It only got worse for Battin, when a letter from Deeming's lawyers to Pesutto was leaked to the media on Wednesday. It suggested that in the event of Pesutto's bankruptcy, Deeming would seek to recover her legal costs from those who contributed to his defence fund. The list includes three former Liberal premiers, Ted Baillieu, Denis Napthine and Jeff Kennett, two sitting MPs, Georgie Crozier and David Southwick, and other party figures who have supported the Hawthorn MP. According to one Pesutto supporter, the letter had the effect of 'galvanising support' for the beleaguered former leader, as it 'showed it won't end with him if he is bankrupted'. 'It will engulf the entire party with months of hearings and political bloodletting ahead.' Deeming's lawyers are set to initiate bankruptcy proceedings on Monday, after Pesutto failed to meet Friday's deadline. Pesutto will then have a further three weeks to pay the $2.3m owed, of which sources say he has raised around a third. Deeming's lawyers have also applied to the federal court for leave to issue subpoenas to obtain communications between Pesutto and those who donated to his unsuccessful legal defence. 'It will be a shit show for all involved and a nightmare for the party,' another Pesutto supporter said. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email It's no wonder Battin faced relentless questioning on the matter. On Wednesday, he repeated the same line that he would keep his conversations confidential and urged his colleagues to stay 'on message'. But Southwick broke ranks, urging people to 'step up' to prevent a Hawthorn byelection. 'The fact that [Pesutto's] fighting for his job, fighting for his livelihood – it is horrific, regardless of what people think about the situation,' he told reporters. As one Liberal MP privately quipped: 'They were the type of comments Brad should have made a fortnight ago'. They weren't alone in their criticism. Several Liberal MPs have expressed frustration that Battin failed to show leadership during a week when the party desperately needed him to. Even some who backed him in the December leadership spill are now questioning their decision. The Herald Sun has already reported murmurs of a leadership challenge – less than six months into Battin's tenure. In a sign of how desperate the situation has become, one rumour doing the rounds is that former MP Matt Bach could be asked to return from the UK to lead. Other names being bandied about are Matthew Guy, in what would be his third go as leader, or Jess Wilson, who lost her bid for deputy in December. If all this wasn't enough, the cherry on top of a shocker week were several stories scrutinising expense claims by Battin's deputy, Sam Groth, including allegations that he used a taxpayer funded, chauffeur-driven car – assigned to Crozier – to take himself and his wife from a fundraising event at the Australian Open to their home in Rye and spending $3,269 on hotel stays after sporting events. Groth, who is also the opposition spokesperson for tourism, sport and events, on Friday said his conduct 'was and is above board'. 'It has all been officially disclosed. There is nothing to hide,' he said. For her part, Crozier told the ABC she was 'incredibly disappointed' over the issue, and that 'Victorians deserve a lot better'. 'I think that Sam needs to explain his actions – I can't,' she said. Again, Battin was forced to front the press on Friday on the defensive. 'It's pretty obvious we've had some tensions in the party at the moment. And I'm continuing to work through that,' he said. If anything this week is proof, yet again, that the Victorian Liberal party is too often its own worst enemy. With additional reporting by Henry Belot
AU Financial Review
3 days ago
- Politics
- AU Financial Review
Vic Liberal turmoil deepens: Deeming fires legal missive at president
Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has sent a legal letter to the party's state president chastising him for not publicly rebuking John Pesutto over his defamation of her and accusing the division of enabling the former leader to raise funds 'under the name of the Liberal Party'. The letter escalates her legal threats against Victorian Liberals who have donated to Pesutto's efforts to raise funds to help pay for a Federal Court order that he pay Deeming's $2.3 million in legal costs.
