Robb dragged into Bartlett battle

Former Iluka Resources boss David Robb is one of four Melbourne Football Club directors facing legal action at the hands of former president Glen Bartlett over a board statement he claims was defamatory.

According to a writ lodged in the Supreme Court of Western Australia, Mr Bartlett has engaged top law firm Bennett to pursue the directors for damages, including aggravated compensatory damages and special damages.

Club president Kate Roffey and fellow directors David Rennick and Steve Morris have also been named as parties to the action, which relates to a statement the club’s board published in June.

In the writ, lodged in Mr Bartlett's home state, he claims the material was supplied to a journalist at Nine and the Herald Sun before being aired during an interview Ms Roffey gave on radio this year.

Mr Bartlett is also pushing the court to issue an injunction preventing the alleged defamatory material from being republished, as well as the coverage of any legal fees.

The legal action comes just five months after Mr Bartlett sued Nine Entertainment Co and two high-profile journalists for damages over a series of articles he also claimed were defamatory.

Mr Bartlett made a sudden decision to step down as president in April 2021, a role he had served in since 2014, amid off-field issues.

Earlier this year, Mr Bartlett issued a statement declaring that the decision to step down was his own; slamming “false narratives” and speculation that had played out in the media.