The judge in the blockbuster defamation case between Lachlan Murdoch and Crikey publisher Private Media says he is considering sending both sides back to mediation, describing the case as being “driven more by ego and hubris and ideology”.

Private Media’s lawyers want to include hundreds of pages of evidence from the $US1.6 billion ($2.4 billion) Dominion defamation case against Fox Corporation as part of a new defence against the claim from Mr Murdoch.