Lawrence Mooney could be exposed to public ‘smear’ by Triple M according to his lawyer

Axed Triple M host Lawrence Mooney has faced court after filing a lawsuit against his former employer, seeking to be paid “no less than $1 million”.

Axed Triple M host Lawrence Mooney’s lawyer claims he has been kept “in the dark” by his client’s former employer, which Mooney is suing for more than $1 million after he was sacked with more than a year left on his radio contract.

John Mark Laxon on behalf of Mooney expressed distaste in the Supreme Court on Thursday over a delay in Southern Cross Austero’s presentation of defence documents.

Mr Laxon, who was engaged by Mooney in November, told the court, “if the defendant had actually put on its defence in a timely manner, instead of being 44 days in default … we perhaps wouldn’t be having this argument”.

He argued there would have been no need to request the “notice to produce” order for documents from SCA, which the Common Law Registrar ultimately rejected on Thursday due to it being “premature”.

Mr Laxon claimed access to documents pertaining to SCA’s defence would potentially aid “settlement prospects” for both parties ahead of mediation because it would give a “clearer picture of the merits”.

“All my client is seeking from the defendant is transparency,” he told the court.

Without access to documents from SCA, Mr Laxon argued his client could be exposed to a “smear” campaign.

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Lawrence Mooney abruptly exited Triple M’s Moonman in the Morning in early November. Picture: Triple M

“In isolation of any evidence to back up those allegations, what we might well be left with is smear without nothing to support it, going into mediation,” he said.

The production of documents would “clear up” that issue, he argued. The registrar was however not satisfied the order was necessary.

There had not been a request for particulars made by SCA, Mr Laxon said, who described his submission on behalf of Mooney “a very straight forward breach of contract claim”.

“You’ll see the relief sought is set out in just four pages of double spacing,” he said.

SCA representative Andrew Smorchevsky told the registrar his client had no intention to request particulars because the company did not believe them to be necessary.

“The parties have agreed on a mediator and it’s an early stage in the proceedings and what we don’t want is for there to be excessive delay,” Mr Smorchevsky said.

Statement of claim lodged last year

Mooney’s lawyers lodged a statement of claim in the NSW Supreme Court in November last year alleging “breach of contract” by Triple M’s owner, Southern Cross Austereo (SCA), The Australian reported.

Mooney, 56, was abruptly taken off-air in November with more than a year to go on his contract, and is seeking damages.

SCA announced on November 15 that Mooney, who had been mysteriously absent from his Triple M Moonman in the Morning breakfast show for more than a week, would not be returning to the program and would exit the network, effective immediately.

Hours later, a statement released by Mr Laxon confirmed that Mooney had enlisted his services.

“My client has a contract which runs through to the end of next year, which SCA has brought to an end,” Mr Laxon said at the time.

“The terms of that contract were drafted by SCA and were bargained for and agreed to by my client. He will hold SCA to those terms. All my client asks is that SCA honour the contract and observe the contractual arrangements which they put in place. No further comment will be made.”

Moonman in the Morning has since been renamed Triple M Breakfast with MG (Mark Geyer), Jess & Pagey.

Mooney had a two-year contract from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2022, according to court documents viewed by The Australian.

His pay had an annual base of $1 million plus GST, equal to $83,333 plus GST a month.

Mooney was also reportedly entitled to receive an annual incentive fee up to $540,000 plus GST, which was to take effect if the program acquired six percentage points or above in the radio audience share, or reached the number one spot in the male 25-54 ­category.

If the show achieved nine or above in its audience share percentage, there was a bonus of $150,000.

Mooney was mysteriously absent from the show before he left. Picture: Lawrence Pinder

Latest survey results from 2021 showed the show recorded an audience share of 4.6 per cent, however two of eight surveys in 2021 showed it recorded two results above six per cent – one 6.4 and another 6.7.

It was reported that Mooney had fallen out with co-host and former The Block contestant Jess Eva and several other staff members as the show suffered dwindling ratings.

Before his departure from the company, he reportedly disappeared without explanation for two weeks.