Palmer court win but more fights loom
A top judge has dismissed the prospect of Clive Palmer forfeiting any parliamentary benefits after he allegedly siphoned off more than $12 million to fund his party's election campaign.
Justice David Jackson said it was "extraordinary" for lawyers for Chinese state-owned miner CITIC Pacific to claim Mr Palmer's election could be subject to an "account of profits" action under commercial law.
But he also criticised Mr Palmer's legal team for trying to have the civil case against him thrown out, at one stage rebuking lawyer Thomas Bradley for a "ridiculous" assertion over the bank account at the heart of the dispute.
Justice Jackson also questioned the MP's claim his company Mineralogy was entitled to spend money CITIC paid for port services for the Sino Iron project at Cape Preston in the Pilbara.
Among their myriad disputes, CITIC alleged in the Queensland Supreme Court that Mr Palmer fraudulently withdrew $10 million and $2.167 million from the bank account to pay for electioneering last year.
Mr Palmer has denied wrongdoing and there was a hearing yesterday on his application to have the civil action thrown out.
Justice Jackson reserved his decision. A three-day trial is set for November if the case is not dismissed.
The latest legal battle in the feud between Mr Palmer and CITIC comes amid bizarre signs of disunity in the Palmer United Party.
Yesterday, Mr Palmer was forced to deny that he told WA senator Dio Wang their Tasmanian colleague Jacqui Lambie was not very bright, would never make it on her own if she quit the party and lamented having to clean up her anti-Muslim comments.
The alleged conversation in Parliament's cafeteria, nicknamed the Trough, was overheard by two people.
However, Senator Lambie said: "Clive couldn't have said that about me because I was standing at the Trough as well, and he said the same thing to me about Dio."
Her chief of staff Rob Messenger said the senator wanted to know if the sources were at the cafe or "together in a cubicle".
When a female reporter asked Mr Palmer about the alleged exchange, he said, "I just don't think you're very bright", and expressed confidence Senator Lambie would stay loyal.
