Bruce Lehrmann loses journalistic and Ten defamation case: Brittany Higgins was raped, the court concludes.
Bruce Lehrmann’s lawsuit for slander against Ten and a journalist is unsuccessful. Brittany Higgins was found to have been raped by the court.
“Based on the balance of probabilities,” Federal Court Justice Nyayamurti Michael Lee has ruled that Bruce Lehrmann sexually assaulted Brittany Higgins at Parliament House in 2019.
Bruce Lehrman wanted large damages, claiming that his reputation was damaged as a result of the Network Ten interview. A federal court judge declared today that Brittany Higgins was sexually assaulted by Lehrmann on the weight of probabilities.
The topics of sexual assault are covered in this article
Bruce Lehrmann and Lisa Wilkinson’s defamation lawsuit was dismissed when a federal court judge determined that there was a reasonable doubt that Lehrmann had sexually assaulted Brittany Higgins at Parliament House.
Lehrmann’s complaint was dismissed by the judge who determined that the defamatory claims made by Ten and Wilkinson were substantially true.
Justice Michael Lee underlined the “fundamental differences” between the criminal and civil standards of proof when delivering his verdict on Monday. He also emphasised that his decision was based on the civil standard of proof.
According to Lee, “I am only satisfied that Mr. Lehrmann has done what I have found him to have done, and I am not required to reach the degree of certainty necessary to support a conviction for a criminal offence.”
He stated that expenses and damages would be decided upon later
The final judgement was handed in the Federal Court in Sydney on Monday, in front of a live audience of almost 45,000 people. It came more than three months after the five-week defamation trial ended and four days after the final hearing on further evidence last week.
In spite of the fact that his name was not mentioned, Lehrmann claimed in a defamation lawsuit he had been named as a perpetrator of Higgins’ alleged rape in Parliament House by Network Ten and reporter Lisa Wilkinson.
Ten defended their reporting, saying that the allegations of sexual assault at Parliament House included in the interview were factual and in the public interest.
Lee stated, “Given its unexpected turns and consequential harm, it may be more aptly described as pervasive” in summarising his conclusions in Lehrmann’s case.
In an appearance on Ten’s current affairs programme, The Project, in March 2021, Higgins disclosed that she had been sexually assaulted by a former coworker at Parliament House in March 2019. August 2021, six months after Higgins was allegedly raped, Lehrmann was identified as the suspect.
The criminal case against Lehrmann for the alleged rape was eventually withdrawn by the prosecution due to grave concerns regarding Higgins’ mental state.
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On February 7, 2023, Lehrmann filed the civil lawsuit alleging defamation, which finally resulted in the judge ruling that Lehrmann had sexually assaulted Higgins.
On Monday, Lee stated, “After fleeing the lion’s den, Mr. Lehrmann made the mistake of coming back for his hat.” Lehrmann has continuously refuted rape accusations.
A protracted legal dispute
The verdict in the contentious defamation case was set to be given on April 4, but it was postponed after Ten was able to successfully reopen the case in order to provide more evidence.
Lee heard claims during two more days of hearings that Lehrmann had given Channel Seven private information without authorization prior to a special interview for their Spotlight show.
These included assertions that the network paid for pricey meals, airfare, lodging in Sydney, Sydney real estate taxes, prostitution, and illegal substances. Lee incorporated the findings of this further data into his decision.
The Project made the identification of Lehrmann
The question of whether Ten’s report was the source of Lehrmann’s identification—given that the programme did not contain his name—was a key one in this case.
In rendering his decision on Monday, Lee said that The Project was responsible for Lehrmann’s identification. But his later discoveries that Lehrmann had sexually assaulted Higgins meant that Ten’s truth defence worked, and Lehrmann’s case was dropped.
Throughout the defamation action, Higgins and Lehrmann testified while being subjected to attacks on their reputation due to unsuitable or misleading statements they made to the media, police, and other parties.
