A co-founder of the Australian Greens is taking his former party to court in a bid to reinstate the life membership stripped from him about six weeks ago over what it considers his pursuit of debate harmful to trans people.
Drew Hutton filed an affidavit in the Queensland supreme court on Tuesday arguing that he was denied natural justice and procedural fairness when the 78-year-old retiree had his membership terminated by an assembly of branch delegates on 20 July.
That decision harkened back to comments relating to trans issues that were made by others below Hutton’s social media posts in June 2022.
The party’s disciplinary committee subsequently deemed he had provided a platform for transphobia by failing to remove these comments.
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Hutton, who also founded the Queensland Greens, has long argued he was pursuing free speech and a “respectful discussion and debate of the rights of trans people and others”.
“As part of the whole suspension and expulsion process, there is a whole lot of skulduggery that has gone on – and I am very confident of winning this,” he told Guardian Australia on Wednesday.
Queensland Greens convener Gemmia Burden said the party would closely examine the legal documents filed by Hutton’s legal team.
Burden has consistently responded to questions on the subject by saying that the Greens’ position, as endorsed by its membership, is that trans rights are non-negotiable human rights.
Following Hutton’s expulsion she said that “no member” was above the need to treat others with respect.
“It is disheartening to see that Mr Hutton has prioritised his perceived right to free speech over the safety of others,” Burden said at the time.
The Australian Greens leader and senator for Queensland, Larissa Waters, declined to comment on Wednesday.
While seeking to distance herself from the process of Hutton’s expulsion, she has previously backed the outcome of his failed internal appeal, saying it reflected “good governance” and sent the message that “nobody is above the rules”.
But Hutton will argue that his internal appeal to the party against his expulsion was lost on “allegations and the presentation of information that were never conveyed to me”.
Among the aspects of his claim to a denial of natural justice, Hutton will allege he never received a copy of the initial complaint made against him and was never told of its contents.
Further, he said he was never told who made the initial complaint against him and was never offered an opportunity to seek to resolve the matter with them.
He will also argue that the obligation to delete all comments on his thread that might be deemed offensive or objectionable was “just simply not right in law and was not right according to the Greens’ own constitution”.
Hutton will be represented by high-profile barristers Stephen Keim and Chris McGrath and expects a legal bill of at least $150,000.
He will launch a crowdfunding campaign and seek to have legal costs paid by the Greens if his court action is successful.
The former lecturer of politics and history said he has three objectives in taking the matter to court.
“I want to get my membership back,” he said. “I want a public apology. And I want them to stop the expulsions, all around Australia.”
Hutton has maintained he has been contacted by more than 40 former Greens members kicked out of the party in recent years for alleged transphobia.
A directions hearing is set for 13 October.
