Former Liberal Party staffer Bruce Lehrmann has accused the ABC of broadcasting Brittany Higgins’ National Press Club address to “prejudice” criminal proceedings brought against him.
The allegation was made by Lehrmann through his lawyers in documents filed in the Federal Court on Monday. In them, Lehrmann’s lawyers describe the decision to air Higgins’ address live on February 9 last year as “recklessly indifferent, negligent and wilfully blind” to the possibility that Higgins would repeat “defamatory” claims against him ahead of his Supreme Court trial.
The ABC became the third media organisation to face defamation action from Lehrmann in early April for its decision to air a joint National Press Club address from Higgins and Grace Tame, and to later upload the address to its YouTube channel.
Lehrmann alleges the contents of the address defamed him by repeating claims he raped Higgins. Lehrmann has always denied the allegations.
In its defence, filed with the court late last month, the ABC denied the material would have caused serious harm to Lehrmann’s reputation because he wasn’t named in the broadcast. The broadcaster also argued that there was no way it would know what Higgins would say, and that its live broadcast was fair reporting on a matter of “public concern”.
The ABC also outlined in its defence that it will lean on qualified privilege to defend the action, meaning that the broadcaster published “matters complained of” by way of giving the public information on a subject it had “an interest” or “apparent interest” in.
In Lehrmann’s reply on Monday, his lawyers argued that the ABC should have been able to delay the live broadcast so that any “contemptuous” elements of the address could be edited or “bleeped” out to minimise defamation risk.
“Even if a potential juror already had some awareness of the allegations made by Ms Higgins, their repetition in such a national forum, juxtaposed with the words of Ms Tame during the NPC address (whose assailant had actually been convicted in a court), could only amount to an overwhelming message that Ms Higgins’ allegations were true and that she had been assaulted,” Lehrmann’s lawyers wrote.
“Indeed the whole point of the NPC address was that Ms Higgins was telling the truth and that cultural and other change ought to follow.”
Lehrmann pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual intercourse without consent and has maintained his innocence. His trial collapsed last year as a result of juror misconduct, and a retrial was abandoned by ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold for fears of risking Higgins’ health.
