Folau case set for trial in early 2020

by Reuters
Tuesday, 13 August 2019 03:30 GMT

Rugby Union - England v Australia - Twickenham Stadium, London, Britain - November 24, 2018 Australia's Israel Folau scores their second try Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs

Image Caption and Rights Information
Rugby player Israel Folau was sacked in May after posting that hell awaited gay people

MELBOURNE, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Israel Folau's unfair dismissal case against Rugby Australia and the New South Wales Waratahs will head to trial in February, 2020 if no settlement is reached beforehand.

Fundamentalist Christian Folau is fighting the termination of his four-year contract in May after he posted a meme on social media that said hell awaited 'drunks, homosexuals, adulterers' and other groups.

The lawyer for the former Australia fullback faced the Federal Circuit Court in Melbourne on Tuesday for a directions hearing where chief judge Will Alstergren encouraged the parties to settle their dispute through mediation on Dec. 13.

Should mediation fail, the case would proceed to trial on Feb. 4, 2020.

Folau, who has cast the legal challenge as a fight for religious freedom, is seeking an apology from Rugby Australia, the right to resume his international career and up to A$10 million ($6.76 million) in compensation.

"It's been publicly acknowledged by Israel and his team that he still seeks that apology and that's still very important to him," Folau's solicitor George Haros told reporters after the hearing.

"That would come a long way to resolving the dispute."

The 30-year-old raised more than A$2 million in public donations for his legal fight with the backing of a local Christian lobby.

Folau scored 37 tries in 73 tests for the Wallabies and was expected to play a key role in the Rugby World Cup starting in Japan next month. He did not appear at Tuesday's hearing.

"He's going very well. His conviction is amazing. He's a strong man," Haros said.

($1 = 1.4797 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Sonali Paul in Melbourne; Writing by Ian Ransom; Editing by Nick Mulvenney)

Openly is an initiative of the Thomson Reuters Foundation dedicated to impartial coverage of LGBT+ issues from around the world.

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Update cookies preferences