THE SQUIZ
Former federal Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann is in the headlines again – this time for the defamation case he’s brought against media companies Network Ten and News Corp, along with journalists Lisa Wilkinson and Samantha Maiden. The news outlets and journalists’ lawyers have filed their defence documents with the Federal Court, detailing their plan to prove Lehrmann assaulted his colleague Brittany Higgins in their minister’s office in early 2019. That’s the approach Lisa Wilkinson’s also taking, as we talked about last week… Lehrmann’s repeatedly denied the accusation and pleaded not guilty in a criminal trial dropped last year.

BREAK IT DOWN FOR ME…
The defence teams’ plans hinge on something called a ‘truth’ defence, which is one way of defending a defamation lawsuit in Oz. To explain how it works… Lehrmann is suing the journalists and media outlets for their reporting of the alleged assault. Because he denies that it happened, he says the reports harmed his reputation – aka defamed him. But if the defence team can prove ‘on the balance of probabilities’ that he did assault Higgins, the journalists and outlets would be able to say their reporting was fine because it was true. Both outlets have argued that Lehrmann wasn’t named in the reports, so he cannot be defamed… There’s also a question of ‘qualified privilege’. That protects honest communication between people – like a journalist and their source – without fear of being sued for defamation, as long as it can be proven that there was no malice intended.

SO WHAT NOW?
The case isn’t straightforward, and it’s not yet decided whether it will make it to trial. Lehrmann filed his lawsuit after the one-year limitation period (the legally allowed time a complainant can lodge a suit) with the Wilkinson/Higgins interview on The Project airing more than 2 years old. It’s now on Lehrmann to convince the court to extend the limitation period that will allow the case to progress further. If the case does make it to trial, Lehrmann will likely be called on to give evidence, meaning he’ll also face a grilling from defence lawyers, and reports say Higgins would also be expected to appear.