Victorian Labor would be forced to run a "headless ticket" if its preselection of former minister Jane Garrett for at next month's election was forced to start again, a court has heard.
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Disgruntled firefighter Geoff Barker is suing the state branch of the ALP, claiming it operated outside party rules in selecting the former emergency services minister for an upper house vacancy.
In an expedited civil trial in the Supreme Court on Thursday, the party rejected Mr Barker's argument.
Ms Garrett is leaving her Brunswick lower house seat, which is under attack from the Greens, for a safer spot in the upper house.
If Justice Maree Kennedy accepts Mr Barker's assertions, she could order a restart of the preselection process.
Labor's lawyer Jonathan Kirkwood warned doing that would leave the party with a "headless ticket", unable to put out joint promotions and potentially advantage non-ALP candidates.
"The Victorian branch would be without a candidate in a number one position for the seat in these critical weeks," he said.
Justice Kennedy acknowledged it could leave things "up in the air" for the party, given nominations for the November 24 election close in three weeks.
The party says her preselection was made possible when the current member for Eastern Victoria, Daniel Mulino, was made candidate for the new federal seat of Fraser.
But Mr Barker argues the party relied on incorrect rules in doing so.
This led to a "heavily truncated" preselection process that he completed seven minutes after the deadline, his lawyer Michael Pearce SC said.
Mr Pearce said Labor relied on an emergency rule for when a candidate is disendorsed by a party due to something unsavoury or a candidate dying.
That Mr Mulino was simply endorsed for another seat was not enough.
"If he's viable for that seat, he's viable for this seat," Mr Pearce told Justice Maree Kennedy.
He also argued the motion to briefly reopen preselections required a 75 per cent majority of the 33 votes but fell one vote short with 24.
None of the five witnesses recalled how many people voted yes to that motion on August 30 but Mr Pearce relied on the evidence of one who suggested she and eight others had abstained.
Mr Barker is a member of the United Firefighters Union, which has a long history with Ms Garrett stemming from a protracted fight over a new pay deal.
Justice Kennedy has reserved her decision, indicating she would do her "very best" to provide a response within a week, as would be necessary to allow a new preselection to take place.
Australian Associated Press
