Former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann asked one of his friends "You got any gear?" in a text message on the night an interview with Brittany Higgins was aired on Network Ten when she alleged she'd been raped in Parliament House.
Text messages have been released by the Federal Court as part of the evidence in Mr Lehrmann's defamation case against Network Ten, News Life Media and journalists Lisa Wilkinson and Samantha Maiden.
He also told a friend "Need bags" and "Let's get lit".
Mr Lehrmann was not named in the interview, but he had been informed by a journalist that he was the person being referred to in interviews published in February 2021.
Samantha Maiden's story was published in the morning, and the second interview aired on Network Ten's The Project.
Mr Lehrmann has always maintained his innocence and there are no findings against him after his criminal trial was abandoned last year because of a juror's misconduct.
During a hearing into whether he should be allowed to lodge his defamation claim out of time this week, Mr Lehrmann said he watched The Project with a lawyer who had agreed to represent him.
In court, he admitted they had drunk whiskey after what he described as a "traumatic" day.
Mr Lehrmann was not named in the media until August 2021.
The text messages have been included in the case because they relate to his claim he was told he would have to resolve any criminal matters before lodging a defamation case.
Several text messages discuss the possibility of defamation action, including one where he tells a friend he has two lawyers, one for criminal action and another for defamation.
This week in court, he admitted that was a lie, and said he had simply been trying to make it look like he was in control.
The court is yet to decide if the case will be allowed to run, even though the defamation proceedings were lodged outside the 12-month limit.
The media organisations have already indicated they will seek to rely on qualified privilege and prove truth defences.
