Six strange details to surface from Vanessa Amorosi’s trial suing her mum
From ruthless name calling to a wider family affair, these are the most shocking details that have come to light about the pop star’s bitter feud with her mother.
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Melbourne pop star Vanessa Amorosi’s bitter legal stoush with her mother, Joyleen Robinson, has shed light on new details never known about the pair’s tarnished relationship and personal lives.
It’s been an emotional week for the singer, who is suing her mum over two properties – the family’s Narre Warren home and Amorosi’s current family home in California, which is owned by a trust.
Amorosi claims her mum “engaged in unconscionable conduct” when she took control of her finances in 1999, and wants restitution, the sale of the Narre Warren home and to be appointed trustee of Llama Investment Holdings Pty Ltd, which holds her Californian property along with $650k debt.
On Tuesday, Ms Robinson took to the stand following her daughter’s three-hour testimony in the week before, which was heard in a public trial at the Supreme Court.
But as the pair take aim at each other in a bid to score what they believe righteously belongs to them, their true colours have also emerged, with some of their comments raising eyebrows.
Here are six shocking details that have appeared so far in the celebrity trial that may have not otherwise surfaced in the public light.
Amorosi’s life was ‘in limbo’
In the years leading up to the four-day trial, Amorosi’s lawyers said the Australian music icon has continued to perform, participate in media interviews and write her music – however it hasn’t been without struggle.
Court documents sighted by the Herald Sun said the “star’s life has been in limbo for years” due to falling out with her mother, which has also put a strain on her marriage to martial arts trainer Rod Busby.
“She stopped making necessary improvements to the West Hills home where she lives with her son because she has been unsure for years about her ownership of the property,” Amorosi’s lawyer, Dominica Sophia Tannock, said in an affidavit to the court.
“As the trial date has approached, she has been experiencing escalating levels of stress which make her feel unwell. She has been performing in Australia recently despite feeling unwell.”
While at court late last week, the 42-year-old appeared as if she was about to hit boiling point, looking visibly anxious as she exited the court on multiple occasions.
Amorosi was ‘ostracised’ from her family
Despite Amorosi and her mum the ones battling it out in the courtroom, it appears the dispute has become a family affair with the pop star suggesting her loved ones “ostracised” her.
The singer disclosed she was made to feel as if she couldn’t return to the family home after a “war” erupted in early 2015, when she asked Ms Robinson why one of her home loans wasn’t paid off.
“She said I spent all the money and that I should come home and get to work, I should go back to touring,” Amorosi said.
“I asked her to show me where the money had gone … asking that question to my mum had my siblings very angry. It started a war between the family.”
Amorosi earlier revealed her mother was in control of her finances after establishing several trusts when the artist’s career kicked off in the early 2000s.
‘F--king disgusting’: Amorosi’s feelings about mum
An email penned by Amorosi following the disagreement with her family in 2015 – which was shown to the court – highlighted the singer’s loss of respect for her Ms Robinson.
The singer called her mum “f--king disgusting” in response to a suggestion she received rent money from a property that didn’t belong to her. She also labelled some family members “judgmental righteous a-sholes”.
Amorosi told the court it was instilled into her from a young age to only trust her mother with her money, with Ms Robinson allegedly telling her to be cautious of her friends, management and even her step dad.
“The person at the end of the day that you are to trust is your mum,” Amorosi said, recounting what she suggested were her mother’s words.
“Boyfriends were enemies, husband was the enemy. She was to be the only one there with the right intentions, and I believed it.”
Ms Robinson’s holiday, calls to delay trial
In the lead up to the trial, Amorosi’s mum asked judge Justice Steven Moore to delay the four-day event as she had recently hired new lawyers.
However, His Honour shut this request down, saying “it smacks of arrogance,” after questioning “what sort of temerity is that?”.
In response, Amorosi’s barrister Philip Solomon KC suggested the defence was attempting to delay the trial, before noting Ms Robinson and her husband Peter had just returned from Sydney.
This trip was noted in court documents which described the couple as “happy” as they enjoyed a cruise and posed for photos.
Questions over Amorosi’s financial wellbeing
After giving her testimony, Amorosi was grilled by her mother’s lawyer Daniel Harrison in a gruelling cross-examination that targeted her touring company, her memory and current financial situation.
However, Amorosi remained defensive and hit back at claims she made a false statement to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission when she deregistered her company Road Runner.
Despite it being listed as part of her current lawsuit, she declared the company was not involved in any legal disputes and explained she shut it down as she wasn’t going to use it.
This, in addition to several other matters shown in bank statements, legal letters and mortgage documents left Mr Harrison with many questions.
However, Amorosi said she had little or no recollection of most events which led Mr Harrison to say: “you don’t have a very good memory full stop”.
“(The trial) ultimately comes down to … two people who have a different account of what did and didn’t happen in a particular conversation,” he said.
“Your honour will have to weigh up whose account is more believable.”
Amorosi to launch new album Memphis Love
Following the trial, Amorosi is expected to launch her eighth album Memphis Love, which is expected to contain songs “very different” to what she’s created in the past.
There were fears the album – which is expected to be released either at the end of this year or the start of 2024 – would be delayed if the trial was pushed back.
The album was inspired by the genres of gospel, soul, funk and blues, with Amorosi telling Billboard she is “really excited for this chapter to begin”.
As for the trial, it will continue this week, with Amorosi’s stepfather Peter Robinson and two more witnesses expected to give evidence.
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