New candidates pulled into Liberal factional war

A Liberal Party member trying to overturn the endorsement of three senior MPs in court will now attempt to invalidate nine other candidates in key seats.

The escalation of the factional war comes as the NSW Court of Appeal prepares to hand down its judgment on the validity of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s decision to shield three senior MPs from preselection challenges. Picture: David Geraghty.

A Liberal Party member trying to overturn the endorsement of three senior Morrison government MPs in court will now attempt to invalidate nine other handpicked candidates running in key seats.

With the federal election due to be called this week, NSW Liberal Party executive member Matt Camenzuli has sought a Supreme Court injunction to strike out last-minute Liberal candidates in Eden-Monaro, Parramatta, Hughes, Warringah, Fowler, Grayndler, Greenway, ­McMahon and Newcastle.

The escalation of the factional war comes as the NSW Court of Appeal prepares to hand down its judgment on Tuesday, determining the validity of the Prime Minister’s decision to shield his three senior MPs – Alex Hawke, Sussan Ley and Trent Zimmerman – from preselection challenges.

Alex Hawke. Picture: Gary Ramage

Court documents lodged on Monday night reveal the original case, brought by Mr Camenzuli, has been extended to include nine candidates that were chosen by Mr Morrison on the weekend at the expense of a vote by branch members.

The court documents request that senior Liberal figures – ­including NSW president Philip Ruddock and federal director ­Andrew Hirst – are “restrained” by the court from requesting the names of the nine candidates be printed on the ballot papers for the upcoming federal election.

The statement of claim lodged with the Supreme Court asserts the temporary committee appointed by the Liberal federal executive – comprising Mr Morrison, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and former federal Liberal president Christine McDiven – has no legal standing to select candidates under the NSW division’s constitution.

“There was no power available to any person or committee of persons managing the NSW Division under the Constitution of that Division to select or endorse any person as the Liberal candidate for election to office as a Member of the House of Representatives,” the legal document reads.

“Unless that candidate has first been endorsed by the State Executive of The Liberal Party of Australia, NSW Division.”

After months of factional infighting prevented the appointment of candidates in more than a dozen seats, the Liberal Party ­announced on Saturday it had ­finally selected candidates in a raft of outstanding seats – just hours before the contested standing of the committee was due to expire.

This included lawyer Katherine Deves in Warringah, businesswoman Maria Kovacic in the western Sydney seat of Parramatta and Jerry Nockles, an executive at the Pharmacy Guild and Liberal senator Jim Molan’s former chief of staff, in Eden-Monaro.

Trent Zimmerman. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

Sussan Ley. Picture: Getty Images

Mr Morrison and Mr Hawke, his key factional ally and Immigration Minister, have been ­accused of trying to bypass the NSW Liberal Party’s democratic processes to parachute preferred candidates into seats.

While the NSW Court of ­Appeal’s determination on Tuesday afternoon will likely have a significant bearing on the outcome of this broadened case, the highly charged legal challenge will prove an unwelcome distraction for Mr Morrison as he campaigns across NSW.

The nine Liberal candidates have all been included as defendants by Mr Camenzuli’s counsel in the legal proceedings.

The case hinges on the March 4 decision by the Liberal federal executive to temporarily dissolve the party’s NSW division to endorse Mr Hawke, Environment Minister Ms Ley and North Sydney MP Mr Zimmerman.

On Friday, a full bench of the NSW Court of Appeal — comprising judges John Basten, Mark ­Leeming and Anthony Payne – ­reserved its judgment after hearing the arguments of Scott Robertson, Mr Camenzuli’s barrister, and Liberal Party’s counsel Guy Reynolds SC.

“(The court) is of course aware of the urgency of the resolution of this dispute, and will give its judgment as soon as conveniently possible,” Justice Basten said.

The ongoing legal stoush came amid intensifying party anger about the decision to cancel preselections. In an incendiary speech last Tuesday, NSW senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells accused Mr Morrison of being an “autocrat” who was “trampling the rights” of party members.