A staffer for former One Nation senator Brian Burston has claimed he told her he didn’t want anyone to know she was his “pet” in a bizarre Federal Court claim where she alleges he sexually harassed her.
Brian Burston, who was a NSW Senator for Pauline Hanson’s firebrand party, suffered a setback in a civil case he is fighting against his former employee after asking the court to dismiss the case.
Wendy Leach worked for Mr Burston while he was a sitting senator before she was dismissed from her role as an electoral officer in 2018.
She is now suing her former employer, claiming he discriminated against her on the grounds of sex.
Ms Leach also accused Mr Burston of sexually harassing her but parts of her claim were struck out in a judgment delivered on Thursday.
In documents filed in the Federal Court, Ms Leach claims Mr Burston invited her to lunch in thxjmtzywe first few weeks of her employment around September 2016.
She claimed Mr Burston said words to the effect of “I want to tell you something”.
“At the lunch, Mr Burston said to Ms Leach words to the following effect: ‘Don’t tell anyone, I don’t want anyone to know that you’re my pet’,” the documents read.
Ms Leach claimed Mr Burston sexually harassed her by making “unwelcome sexual advances” and engaging in “unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature”.
She claimed he engaged in “indirect sex discrimination” by imposing a “condition that was likely to have the effect of disadvantaging females”.
Ms Leach also claimed Mr Burston committed “acts of victimisation” by publicly denying the alleged sexual harassment and threatening defamation action against her.
Mr Burston tried to get the case thrown out of court or strike out parts of her claim.
But on Thursday Justice John Halley ruled the court had the ability to rule on the matter.
“(Mr Burston) has not demonstrated the applicant has no reasonable prospects of success in establishing the claims that she has advanced,” he said.
However, Justice Halley did strike out three paragraphs out of Ms Leach’s claim in relation to a section of the act “directed at sexual harassment in the course of the receipt of the provision of services”.
He said Mr Burston had “only been partially successful”.
“The parties will be given an opportunity to advance short written submissions on costs in the event that costs orders cannot be agreed,” Justice Halley said.
A further case management hearing has been set down for February 18.
Mr Burston, who defected to Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party after a falling out with Senator Hanson, lost his seat at the 2019 election.
