[
Bruce Lehrman loses defamation declare towards broadcaster and journalist over 2021 interview together with his accuser.
A former authorities worker in Australia who raped a colleague within the nation's parliament has had a decide dismiss her defamation declare towards a broadcaster that aired her accuser's allegations.
Justice Michael Lee dominated that former Conservative authorities adviser Bruce Lehrman was not defamed in a tv interview with Brittany Higgins and that he raped her in a minister's workplace in 2019.
Lee primarily based his discovering on the steadiness of chances, which is a decrease commonplace than that utilized in legal trials to determine guilt past an inexpensive doubt.
Lee stated it was “extremely seemingly” that the previous authorities worker was “intent” on having intercourse with the girl he discovered engaging and knew she was intoxicated.
Lee stated, “In his pursuit of satisfaction he didn’t care whether or not Ms. Higgins understood or agreed.”
“Mr. Lehrman raped Ms. Higgins,” the decide stated.
“I hasten to emphasise that this can be a discovering on the steadiness of chances.”
Lee additionally criticized Community 10 for airing the allegations towards Lehrman, discovering that doing so “fell wanting the usual of reasonableness”, and stated that Higgins was a “advanced and, in lots of respects, unsatisfactory witness”.
Lehrman didn’t remark to the media current as he left the courtroom.
Lehrman, who has all the time maintained his innocence, sued Community 10 and journalist Lisa Wilkinson over a 2021 interview with Higgins, during which he was not recognized by title.
Lehrman was prosecuted for alleged rape in 2022, however the proceedings ended with no discovering towards him after a juror carried out analysis into the case in violation of courtroom guidelines.
Prosecutors dropped the proposed retrial after figuring out that it could trigger severe hurt to Higgins' psychological well being.
Higgins' allegations shook Australia's political panorama after they have been first made public in 2021, sparking dialogue about sexual violence and the remedy of girls in politics.