Lawyers for Treasurer Joe Hockey have told the Federal Court that if he wins his defamation case against Fairfax Media he should be entitled to damages at the top of the range - effectively as much as $1 million.

On the final day of the hearing, Mr Hockey's barrister Bruce McClintock, SC, told the court the Treasurer should receive extra - or aggravated - damages because of the way the publisher conducted its case in court.

Joe Hockey outside the Federal Court during the defamation trial proceedings. Credit:Ben Rushton

Mr Hockey is suing The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and The Canberra Times in three actions over a series of articles, posters and tweets published on May 5, 2014, and headlined "Treasurer for Sale" in two of the mastheads.