Updated ,first published
Controversial broadcaster Kyle Sandilands said the past couple of weeks have been “traumatic” as he entered the Federal Court on Friday morning for his first hearing against KIIS-owner ARN over the termination of his $100 million contract.
“Wish me luck,” Sandilands told the media before entering the court buildings in Sydney.
ARN terminated Sandilands’ $100 million deal the instant a two-week deadline it had set for him to fix his “serious misconduct” against co-host Jackie “O” Henderson expired.
Sandilands’ lawyers argued for an expedited hearing to try and get the star back on air as soon as possible, telling the court: “The battle lines have already been drawn”.
Sandilands’ legal team, headed by Scott Robertson, SC, told the court that the case “concerns 20 minutes of conduct on one day”.
“My client’s principal objective is to get back on air before his audience as soon as possible,” Robertson told the court, adding that he is ready and capable of working this Monday.
After the hearing, Sandilands emphasised his need to work, telling reporters that he had a mortgage to pay like everyone else.
ARN’s lawyer Tom Blackburn, SC, told the court that ARN does not accept the central premise that Sandilands’ “goodwill and notoriety are wasting away every day he is not on air” and contends that the prospect of him returning to air with KIIS “is effectively nil”.
Blackburn said Sandilands’ claim was effectively for compensation.
He also told the court that ARN’s claim of unconscionable conduct towards Sandilands involved “prior conduct towards Ms Henderson” and not just the 20-minute on-air controversy that ended the most successful and lucrative partnership in Australian media.
Justice Angus Stewart made orders for ARN to file its defence against Sandilands’ claim next month when the case continues before the court.
Sandilands has claimed that his criticism of Henderson on February 20, which reduced her to tears, was no different to many other arguments the pair have had over 27 years of working together and was used as a pretext by radio network ARN to tear up their contracts.
In legal documents to launch his court claim on Monday, Sandilands’ lawyers revealed the radio and television personality receives a $120,000 annual allowance for flights, $500,000 in advertising for his products and a $7.4 million base salary, along with other benefits.
In the court filing, Sandilands’ lawyers wrote: “The exchange was congruent with the style, tone and nature of the Show and the robust character that [ARN] ‘desired’.”
As a result, Sandilands claimed the termination of his contract by ARN was “invalid” because he committed no serious misconduct or breach. If there was a breach, he had no reasonable opportunity to “remedy” it as Henderson’s contract had already been terminated, Sandilands’ lawyers argued.
He says he is still owed upwards of $85 million as part of the deal agreed in 2023, which also included a $200,000 consultancy fee among a series of clauses. His contract also entitled him to sublicencing fees to his company Quasar Media, worth $2 million annually, according to the statement of claim.
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Colin Kruger is a senior business reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via email.
Jessica Yun is a business reporter covering retail and food for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via X or email.
