Lawyers for former Liberal MP Sam Groth and his wife Brittany have accused News Corp of publishing articles that omitted key comments, including a Victorian MP’s assertion that the allegations were a ‘political hit job’. The couple is suing The Herald and Weekly Times (HWT) and journalist Stephen Drill over a series of articles published in July that alleged the pair began a sexual relationship when Brittany was 16 or 17 and Sam was her tennis coach.
In court documents filed on Wednesday, the Groths’ lawyers said HWT failed to include a statement from Liberal MP James Newbury, who told Drill the allegations were ‘nothing more than a political hit job from inside the party room that was not based on fact but an untruthful smear’. Newbury, referred to as ‘Confidential Source 6’ in HWT’s defence, said the story was not true.
HWT has argued in its defence that the articles were in the public interest, claiming the allegations could have been ‘weaponised’ by political opponents ahead of the 2026 state election. The tabloid also said it was exempt from new privacy laws due to legal protections for journalists. However, the Groths’ lawyers described the reporting as ‘gossip, rumour, and irrational conclusions based on scant information’.
The defence reveals that HWT received information from a confidential source in late 2024 about concerns Brittany might have been underage when the relationship began. It also notes that Herald Sun deputy editor Chris Tinkler obtained a Facebook photo from May 2012 showing the couple at a school formal when Brittany was 18, and photos from a trip to Bali for her 18th birthday in April 2012.
The Groths have consistently said they met at a tennis club. The case is set for a case management hearing on 30 October in the Federal Court.
