Argument between creators of rival Facebook groups in one of Sydney’s most affluent suburbs ends up in court
- Rose Bay resident Bianca Havas was accused of defaming local Bruce Goldberg
- Both were creators of rival Facebook community groups for the affluent suburb
- A post about him appeared on page but it had been written by another woman
A bitter spat has broken out between the the creators of rival community Facebook groups.
Rose Bay resident Bianca Havas was accused of defaming local man Bruce Goldberg after a post about him appeared on the Facebook group ‘Rose Bay Community – Official Group Page’.
Ms Havas did not write the post but she was an an administrator and creator of the group.
Mr Goldberg had been banned from the group and had been forced to set up his own Rose Bay community Facebook group.
Bianca Havas (pictured) settled the case out of court but has been forced to close the Facebook group down as a result
His group was called ‘The original and official Rose Bay community group’.
The post was written by group member Alice Voigt in November last year.
Mr Goldberg took his case to the NSW District Court seeking damages over the post from both Ms Havas and Ms Voigt, the ABC reported.
In the statement of claim, Mr Goldberg’s lawyer Barrie Goldsmith said Ms Voigt’s comments characterised him as a ‘danger to the women of Rose Bay’.
He went on to claim he had been ‘brought into hatred, ridicule and contempt and has suffered and continues to suffer loss and damage to his reputation and injury to his feelings’.
Ms Havas this week announced on the Facebook page she had settled her case with Mr Goldberg out of court and as a result will be shutting the page down.
‘I thought creating this page would provide a platform to bring out the best in our wonderful community,’ Ms Havas wrote.
‘Despite the best intentions, I had no idea it would end this way and that I would have to invest months of my time in legal negotiations.’
The post was written by group member Alice Voigt (pictured) in November last year
Ms Voigt’s case is still going through the courts after Mr Goldberg refused her offer of $5,000 in damages and to cover his court costs.
In a defence document filed with the court she claimed she deleted the post shortly after being notified of the legal proceedings.
She later created a Gofundme page to pay for her lawyer, which has resulted in Mr Goldberg filing another claim against her.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted all parties involved for comment.
Both Mr Goldberg and Ms Havas were creators of rival Facebook community groups for the affluent suburb of Rose Bay (pictured)