Office of Local Government barrister Matthew Cobb-Clark told a NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal hearing into the alleged breach and other related claims,that by moving the March 2019 motion,Councillor Byrne sought to use his public office to obtain a private benefit in procuring an apology from the pair after his lawyers had already sent them legal letters over the posts.
“The personal benefit that mayor Byrne gained ... wasn’t simply just the restoration of his reputation in an abstract sense,it gave him tangible advantages in defamation proceedings foreshadowed by him,” Mr Cobb-Clark told the tribunal on Friday.
He said if either of the councillors in question,Colin Hesse and Pauline Lockie,had apologised,then that could’ve been used to bolster a finding in civil court proceedings that the statements were defamatory.
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If they chose not to apologise,then that could’ve been seen as an aggravating factor in Cr Byrne claiming damages against the pair,Mr Cobb-Clark said.
“Council resolution shouldn’t be used by councillors to address personal grievances or to put the councillors in a better position to address a defamation claim against another councillor. That’s an abuse of power,” he said.
The tribunal heard the comments posted on the Facebook pages of Crs Hesse and Lockie accused Cr Byrne and other councillors of being “in bed with developers” over their stance on the draft development control plan for the Victoria Road precinct in Marrickville.