Ten lawyers tried to offer Cornes $20k

A court has heard that Network Ten tried to offer former ALP candidate, Nicole Cornes, $35,000 to settle a defamation claim.

The sum included $15,000 to go towards her initial legal costs, and $20,000 in damages, before her claim for defamation went to court.

Today, Mrs Cornes' lawyers were seeking legal costs, after she won $85,000 in damages from the network, following an on-air remark made by comedian Mick Molloy, in 2008 on the television program Before the Game.

Mrs Cornes claimed Mr Molloy's remark - that she had sex with footballer Stuart Dew - humiliated her and questioned her fidelity to her husband, football identity Graham Cornes.

Previously, lawyers for Network Ten and Molloy had argued that the skit was 'absurdist humour' and was not to be taken seriously.

But the Judge had disagreed, and accepted Mrs Cornes had been badly affected by the remark awarding her damages two weeks ago.

Network Ten's out of court offering also came with a confidentiality clause, and was much less than what Mrs Cornes had originally asked for, which was $120,000 to settle.

The judge will decide how much more Ten should pay Mrs Cornes for legal costs on top of her $85,000 damages payout at a later date.