Letter was false, claim Wales

Former directors of the Ettalong branch of the Bendigo Bank, Matthew and Debra Wales, have claimed a letter published in Peninsula News under the name of former branch chairman Mr Don Leggett was false.

They claim the letter, published in the June 26 edition of Peninsula News, was written by the branch's company secretary Mr Brian Wright.

In a "without prejudice" letter from their solicitor, former Gosford councillor Mr Trevor Drake, the Wales claimed publication of the letter "purportedly from D Leggett" defamed them.

"We are instructed to provide a concerns notice for your attention," Mr Drake wrote.

"The defamatory imputation our clients instruct that are carried by the publication are as follows:

"1. Mr and Mrs Wales are unnaturally aggressive;

"2. Mr and Mrs Wales when on the board of Bendigo Bank worked against the interests of the bank and its shareholders,

"3. That Mr Leggett and Mr and Mrs. Wales were the only directors of Bendigo bank, when there were seven other directors.

"4. The behaviour of Mr and Mrs Wales adversely affected Mr Leggett's health which may have lead to an untimely death."

Mr Drake said he had been instructed that the illness suffered by "the author of the letter to the editor" in "the last four to five weeks of his life" meant that he "could not have authored the published letter".

"In fact, our client rang your office and queried this, and was informed by one of your staff that Mr Leggett did not write it, and it had been written by a Mr Brian Wright on his behalf.

"Without prejudice to any claims our clients may have, they would be seeking at the least publication of an apology in your paper, including the statement that ... Brian Wright was in fact the author.

"We await an offer to make amends, noting the time restrictions on such."

Peninsula News editor Mr Mark Snell said he understood the letter from Mr Leggett had been submitted by Mr Wright who was acting on Mr Leggett's behalf, in the same way that Mr Drake had submitted the Wales' concerns on their behalf.

Mr Snell said he had seen no evidence to suggest that Mr Leggett's illness had prevented him writing the letter.

He said Ms Wales had spent around an hour speaking with a Peninsula News reporter about the bank branch for the previous edition but had declined the opportunity to have her comments published.

Letter, 7 Jun 2011 Trevor Drake, Drake and Associates