Federal Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price says she needs to raise more than $300,000 to fund her legal defence in a defamation case.
The Warlpiri/Celtic senator is being sued by Central Land Council (CLC) chief executive Lesley Turner over statements she made in a July 2024 media release.
In an email to supporters, Senator Price said she needs to raise $320,000 by the end of August, criticising defamation laws in the Northern Territory, which she argued "never adopted the national reforms designed to better protect free speech while still respecting reputation".
Arguing that some people would "love nothing more than to see me lose this case," she said she was asking for financial help due to "staggering" federal court costs to have a "fighting chance".
"I was elected to speak for those who have no voice," she said. "But defending that choice will take enormous resources."
Senator Price is being sued over her claims that a vote of no confidence had been moved against Mr Turner during a CLC meeting — something the council denied.
Her media release at the time quoted then-CLC chair Matthew Palmer, who said a "majority of Central Land Council members showed their support for the dismissal of the CEO due to unprofessional conduct".
The CLC later stated the Tennant Creek meeting resulted instead in Mr Palmer being replaced as chair by Warren Williams after he "lost the confidence of the council".
In the release, Senator Price again quoted Mr Palmer, saying there was "majority support for change of direction and leadership" at the CLC.
The statement was published in the NT News, which subsequently removed two articles and issued an apology to Mr Turner.
In her fundraising plea, Senator Price warned supporters losing the case could see her bankrupted and disqualified from Parliament under section 44 of the Constitution.
"That would mean your voice in Parliament is gone," she wrote. "You deserve to know the risk I'm facing – and exactly why your help means so much right now."
Earlier this year, former Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto narrowly avoided disqualification after losing a defamation case against Liberal MP Moira Deeming.
"What felt overwhelming at first becomes achievable when I have supporters like you by my side, helping me clear each hurdle," Senator Price said.
In his claim, Mr Turner's alleges Senator Price "seriously injured [his] character and personal and professional reputation" and acted "improperly, unjustifiably or lacking in bona fides". He further claims she failed to verify the allegations before publication.
Senator Price has abandoned her defences of truth and honest opinion, instead relying solely on qualified privilege. Court filings show she argues she was acting on information provided by the land council's then-chair and raising "issues of significant and immediate public interest" in her then-role as shadow minister for Indigenous Australians and as a NT senator.
Her defence also raises alleged shortcomings in the CLC's fraud risk management.
The trial is scheduled for October.
Last year, National Indigenous Times reported Senator Price attempted to gain parliamentary access to confidential CLC meeting minutes — an act a Labor senator described as "completely inappropriate" and a "concerning use of Senate procedure".
Senator Price has pledged all donations will go "directly to my legal defence to make sure our voice is never silenced" and that every contribution over $300 will be "permanently and publicly recorded in the Senate as a personal gift to me".
"It means your name will always be remembered as one of the Australians who stood by me when it mattered most," she said.
"When I walk into that courtroom, I will be walking in with your strength at my side."
