James Ashby’s lawsuit over Peter Slipper legal costs dismissed

Pauline Hanson’s right-hand man could be saddled with even more legal costs after an attempt to recoup millions went badly.

Pauline Hanson’s right-hand man has failed in his bid to extract millions from the commonwealth to cover legal costs from a sexual harassment suit he filed and later abandoned in the mid-2010s.

The One Nation leader’s chief of staff, James Ashby, now faces the possibility of even more legal costs after his case was dismissed in the Federal Court on Friday.

Mr Ashby sued the commonwealth in a bid to recover $3.67m in legal costs from the claim he filed against former MP and speaker of the House of Representatives Peter Slipper.

But the first part of his lawsuit was knocked back earlier this year and now the second — a Fair Work Act argument described as “novel” by Justice Robert Bromwich — has been dismissed before making it to a hearing.

James Ashby now may face even more legal costs.

Mr Ashby was employed by Mr Slipper in 2011 when the member for Fisher sensationally defected from the Coalition to be installed as speaker of the house by the Gillard government.

A political scandal erupted in April 2012 when Mr Ashby filed a lawsuit alleging Mr Slipper had sexually harassed him via text messages and lewd remarks.

Mr Slipper denied the allegations, accusing Mr Ashby of trying to damage his political career. Mr Slipper resigned as speaker in October 2012.

A judge agreed Mr Ashby’s lawsuit was an “abuse of process” and dismissed the claim, but that decision was overturned on appeal.

Mr Ashby abandoned the lawsuit in June 2014.

Peter Slipper resigned as speaker in October 2012 amid the fallout from Mr Ashby’s allegations. Picture: Gary Ramage.

The commonwealth covered Mr Slipper’s legal costs in lieu of insurance that later became available to MPs but did not do the same for Mr Ashby, who racked up a $3.67m legal bill.

In 2018, Mr Ashby asked the federal government for a grace payment of $4.5m to cover his costs and those of his solicitor.

The request was rejected by a delegate of the Finance Minister, who wrote Mr Ashby had made the choice to sue over less costly methods of addressing his allegations and it was his job to manage his legal costs.

Justice Bromwich upheld the delegate’s decision in January, dismissing the first prong of Mr Ashby’s case.

Last month the commonwealth moved to dismiss the rest of Mr Ashby’s lawsuit — which alleged the decision to refuse him a grace payment was an adverse action under the Fair Work Act and he was entitled to damages — before proceeding to a full hearing.

Justice Bromwich ruled in the commonwealth’s favour on Friday and gave the government a fortnight to decide if it will pursue costs.

The judge ruled the decision to refuse the grace payment was authorised under commonwealth law and therefore could not be an adverse action.

“In those circumstances, there is no reasonable prospect of Mr Ashby successfully prosecuting the balance of his proceeding relying upon there being adverse action,” Justice Bromwich wrote.

The commonwealth must advise whether it will seek costs by August 6.

Originally published as James Ashby’s lawsuit over Peter Slipper legal costs dismissed