A court in Denmark will rule on Friday on whether Social Liberal Party leader Martin Lidegaard is guilty of libel for accusing the Danish People's Party of wanting to 'deport thousands of fellow citizens because they have a different skin colour'.
The statement, made during a political debate ahead of municipal elections in Randers in 2025, referred to an interview with Morten Messerschmidt, leader of the Danish People's Party in the Weekendavisen newspaper.
Messerschmidt responded by telling Lidegaard to withdraw the statements and when this didn't happen, he sued him for libel and defamation, focusing on the use of the word "skin colour".
"I have lots of friends and acquaintances who have a different skin colour than me," Messerschmidt told the court in August. "I got really upset."
He was still sometimes stopped by people who had seen the debate who asked whether they risked deportation because of their skin colour, he claimed.
The court hearing in August was the first time in Danish history that two MPs - both also party leaders - sat opposite each other in a court case where one had sued the other over libel or slander.
The framework for what can be said in politics was expanded as a result of a lawsuit filed by one of Messerschmidt's predecessors, Pia Kjærsgaard, who took Karen Sunds from Folkebevægelsen, an anti-EU party, to court because in 1999 Sunds had called the then DF chairman "racist".
The Supreme Court ruled in 2003 that the statement was acceptable in political discourse, shifting the boundaries of how far politicians can go.
"Freedom of expression has become a little greater, and the protection of personal reputation and peace of mind has become a little less," professor of criminal law Vagn Greve said after the verdict 23 years ago.
In the current trial, Lidegaard's lawyer René Offersen has demanded that Martin Lidegaard be acquitted arguing that as a politician, he is covered by a particularly extensive freedom of expression.
Andreas Thyrring, CEO and partner in the political consulting firm Ulveman & Børsting, said that both parties could potentially benefit from the court case.
"They are getting some political and media attention on a matter that is close to their hearts," he said.
The verdict will be handed down on Friday at 12.45pm without a court hearing, meaning the two party leaders do not need to appear in the Court in Frederiksberg.