Luke Sayers' daughters have thrown their support behind their father as the former Carlton president fights his estranged wife Cate in an explosive Supreme Court defamation battle stemming from his infamous 'd*** pic' scandal.
The latest show of support came after Bronte Sayers uploaded an image of a cake with the words 'F*** them all' written in icing to Instagram on Monday night. The post appeared shortly after lawyers for her parents clashed in Melbourne's Supreme Court over the future of the high-profile case.
Soon after, Bronte's sister Claudia Sayers shared a screenshot of media coverage about the cake post. Claudia added the caption: 'Thanks dad for always being in our corner.' Bronte later re-shared that message to her own followers in another public display of support for their father.
Background of the Scandal
The bitter legal fight stems from the scandal that erupted in January last year, when an explicit image was posted to Luke Sayers' X account and tagged a senior executive from Carlton sponsor Bupa. At the time, Sayers strongly denied posting the image himself. He claimed his social media account had been hacked or 'compromised' by a third party. He urged followers to 'please ignore all posts' before disabling the account entirely.
The AFL integrity unit later cleared Sayers of wrongdoing after reviewing what it described as the 'available evidence'. Carlton also commissioned its own independent investigation led by Christopher Townshend KC. That investigation also cleared the former club president. Despite being exonerated by the AFL, Sayers resigned as Carlton president just minutes after the league announced its findings.
'The past two weeks have been very tough for everyone who has been impacted by an unauthorised social media post,' Sayers said at the time. 'I did not post the image, either deliberately or accidentally. This decision draws a line in the sand.'
Renewed Legal Battle
But the scandal reignited earlier this year when Cate Sayers launched Supreme Court defamation proceedings against her estranged husband. She alleges she had been falsely blamed for posting the image through a statutory declaration he submitted to the AFL integrity unit. According to court filings, Cate Sayers claims the declaration implied she was responsible for uploading the explicit photograph. She says it portrayed her as mentally unstable and untrustworthy.
Her legal team also alleges she was never interviewed during the AFL investigation. This was despite later being identified as the alleged third party connected to the account compromise. Cate Sayers further claims her husband made false assertions about her mental health. She says the comments were used to bolster his account of events.
During Monday's hearing, her barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC told the court: 'We say she's never suffered from those things and she's certainly never been prescribed medication that she periodically refuses to take.' The court also heard allegations that the statutory declaration quickly spread beyond AFL headquarters. It allegedly became the subject of widespread discussion.
Daughters' Public Support
Bronte and Claudia Sayers had already publicly sided with their father in January. They released a joint statement declaring they would stand behind him throughout the dispute. 'This dispute sits within a long and complicated family history, with very different accounts of past events. Based on what we have lived and experienced, we stand behind our father and his position,' they said. 'If needed, we will give evidence to support [Dad] … but we still hope it won't come to that.'
The sisters also said they regretted the deeply personal dispute continuing to unfold publicly. 'We are very sorry that this continues to play out publicly. We would have much preferred for all of this to be resolved privately, without going to court.'
Luke Sayers has rarely been seen publicly with his daughters since the scandal erupted. However, recent social media images showed him holidaying in Italy alongside Bronte and Claudia amid the ongoing legal drama. The Supreme Court hearing also revealed the daughters were allegedly 'assisted' by Mr Sayers' public relations adviser. This occurred when their public statements backing their father were released earlier this year.
Court Proceedings and Jurisdiction
Monday's hearing centred on Luke Sayers' attempt to move the case into the Federal Circuit and Family Court. Public reporting would be heavily restricted if the bid succeeds. His barrister, Matt Collins KC, argued the intense media attention surrounding the case had become 'salacious at times, it's been gleeful, it seems to drip in schadenfreude, it's often tabloid in every sense of the word'. Collins also argued the publicity was harming Sayers' business interests. He warned the case would involve highly sensitive personal issues, including attacks on the credibility of both parties.
'Mr Sayers' credibility will be in issue, so too will the credibility of Mrs Sayers,' he told the court. Cate Sayers is opposing the move. She instead wants the matter heard publicly in the Supreme Court before a jury later this year. Her legal team argued she is seeking to 'clear her name' in open court. They say she was publicly linked to the scandal that brought down one of the AFL's most powerful administrators.
After hearing more than two hours of submissions, Justice Andrew Watson reserved his decision. The ruling will cover both the application for a jury trial and Luke Sayers' bid to transfer the proceedings into the Family Court system.
