Laws' ladies trade blows

Jacqui Sperling. Photo / Doug Sherring

Two blondes linked to shock-jock Michael Laws are set to do battle in court over claims and counter-claims of bullying, harassment and defamation.

Laws' former girlfriend, ex-prostitute Jacqueline Sperling, has been served with court papers by one-time friend Debbie Brown - who was also once seen out and about with the radio host.

Brown and lawyer friend Madeleine Flannagan have filed papers in the Auckland District Court, alleging they were defamed in Sperling's blog.

The three were friends until they fell out over comments made in the blog 18 months ago.

Sperling, a former P addict who dated Laws briefly in 2010 - until he went public about their relationship - was asked by the pair to remove comments from her site that they said identified them.

She refused and continued to blog about the pair, including their full names and occupations for the first time this week.

Sperling has since posted a personal letter she says she received from Brown's 10-year-old daughter, and extracts from Brown and Flannagan's affidavits.

In one, Brown says: "I had been briefly friends with her but had fallen out after she published a blog post about my suicide attempt."

Sperling once claimed to have seen Brown threaten to slash someone's throat, Brown says in her affidavit.

"The statement appals me," Brown says. "I have absolutely never made any such threat to anybody, or anything remotely similar. I am shocked that Ms Sperling would make such an incredible statement about me."

Brown denies many of Sperling's allegations, including that she had a relationship with Laws. She and Flannagan have now filed papers under the Harassment Act.

They are seeking restraining orders against Sperling and an order for all comments and blog posts about them to be removed.

"We want everything false and defamatory and harmful written about us removed from her blog," Flannagan said.

They are also considering filing defamation proceedings.

Sperling said yesterday that she would not fight the proceedings because she could not afford a lawyer, but she said she was the victim.

"Until I was served papers on Wednesday night, I had never once named those women," Sperling said.

"I cannot afford a lawyer so the only way I can defend myself against this is to blog about it."