Sam Groth survived a tight vote to retain his role as deputy Liberal leader on Tuesday, the same morning he won a printed apology from the Herald Sun.
The Age revealed on Sunday that the former tennis ace and wife Brittany had settled a legal dispute with the media outlet which would avoid a costly Federal Court battle.
Sam Groth (second from left) as part of the new Liberal leadership team this afternoon.Credit: The Age
Part of the out-of-court settlement included the apology -three sentences printed on page two of the Herald Sun on Tuesday morning and on their homepage.
The paper said a series of articles published over July and August about the Groth’s relationship was not intended to suggest the pair had engaged in any wrongdoing.
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“The Herald Sun recognises that this story has taken a significant toll on the Groth family and apologises to the Groths for the hurt the articles caused,” the apology read.
Sam and Brittany Groth posted the apology, without comment, on their social media.
The pair had pursued News Corp’s Melbourne masthead in court with Brittany suing for a serious breach of privacy and Sam for defamation.
If the case had gone to court, it would have been the first test of Australia’s new privacy laws that allow claims of up to $478,000 in damages.
After reading the morning news, Sam headed for an 8.30am party room meeting which saw Brad Battin lose his leadership and then Groth hang on in a 17-15 vote against David Southwick for the deputy position.
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