Justice David O’Callaghan

Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto has admitted to sharing with ex-state premier Jeff Kennett aspects of settlement discussions with ousted party member Moira Deeming.

The director of collapsed investment firm Linchpin Capital has lost his challenge to a $150,000 penalty, with an appeals court dismissing his arguments as “carping criticism”.

Ousted Victorian Liberal Moira Deeming has admitted in her case against party leader John Pesutto that she was aware of a controversial rally organizer’s far right links earlier than claimed.

Expelled Liberal politician Moira Deeming has admitted calling a gender education program “sleazy, unnecessary drivel” penned by “paedophilia apologists” but denies her views are controversial.

Secret audio of a critical meeting in the lead-up to Moira Deeming’s expulsion from the Victorian Liberals kills party leader John Pesutto’s defamation defence, a court has heard.

A judge has awarded Independent Sydney MP Alex Greenwich $140,000 in his defamation case against former NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham over a homophobic tweet found likely to cause “serious harm” to his reputation. 

The former deputy leader of the Victorian Liberal Party will be required to give evidence in person in a defamation case against party leader John Pesutto by expelled party member Moira Deeming, with a judge noting the importance of cross-examination “chemistry” where credibility is at issue.

Legal action by a Melbourne Football Club member challenging the AFL club’s board election rules has been dismissed, with a judge finding the rule banning campaigning by candidates is not oppressive as alleged.

A judge has expressed concern about the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s suspicion that a former director of Keystone Asset Management may have used investor funds to purchase a house in his wife’s name, calling it “alarming”.

ASIC has secured freezing orders over the assets of an investment fund managed by Keystone Asset Management, with a court also ordering a Keystone director to surrender his passport amid an investigation by the corporate regulator.