Australia's wealthiest individual has contributed to the legal defense of Northern Territory Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price. This support comes amid a defamation lawsuit filed by Les Turner, the chief executive of the Central Land Council (CLC). Turner initiated the lawsuit in September 2022 after Senator Price issued a media release advocating for his dismissal. The release included a statement from former CLC chair Matthew Palmer, indicating that a majority of CLC members supported Turner's removal due to unprofessional conduct.

On Friday, Senator Price updated her register of interests, revealing that she received donations from hundreds of supporters between July 22 and September 5, including contributions from Gina Rinehart's company, Hancock Prospecting. Senators must declare all gifts exceeding $300, and the total donations to her legal fund amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars. However, there is no requirement to disclose the exact value of these gifts, suggesting the actual total could be significantly higher.

In his lawsuit, Turner alleges that Senator Price's media release falsely claimed that a no-confidence motion had been initiated against him by CLC members. His statement of claim asserts, "By reason of the publication of the [media release], the applicant has been seriously injured in his character and in his personal and professional reputation and has suffered and will continue to suffer hurt and embarrassment and loss and damage."

Senator Price later removed the media release from her website. Court documents indicate that she is defending the defamation claim based on the principle of qualified privilege. She contends that the recipients of the release had a legitimate interest in the information and that she reasonably believed Palmer's statements were accurate. Her defense states, "Senator Price considered that a call and attempt by the Chair of CLC to remove the applicant from his position as CEO of the CLC, and the failure of that attempt, were issues of significant and immediate public interest that required her comment as Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians and Senator for Northern Territory."

Last month, it was reported that Senator Price cautioned her supporters about the potential consequences of the case. She expressed concern that a negative outcome could jeopardize her parliamentary seat. "If it goes well for them — defamation cases can go either way, after all — they might even bankrupt me and cost me my seat in parliament," she reportedly communicated to her mailing list subscribers. "But I will not go down without a fight. I will never back down on my principles."

According to Section 44 of Australia's constitution, individuals who are "an undischarged bankrupt or insolvent" are disqualified from serving in the Senate or House of Representatives. The defamation case is scheduled to return to court for trial on October 20.