Overview

• Federal Court Registrar Alison Legge has ordered John Pesutto to pay $2.309 million in legal costs to Moira Deeming after losing a defamation case.
• Pesutto, already liable for $315,000 in damages from the December 2024 verdict, faces potential bankruptcy if unable to pay the lump sum.
• Under Victorian law, bankruptcy would disqualify Pesutto from parliament, triggering a by-election in his marginal Hawthorn seat.
• Pesutto is seeking financial assistance from donors, the Cormack Foundation, and a planned crowdfunding campaign to meet the payment deadline.
• The case stems from Pesutto’s claims linking Deeming to neo-Nazi associations after her attendance at a 2023 rally, which the court ruled defamatory.