Brittany Higgins: Major twist in court battle with Linda Reynolds as former staffer drops health bombshell

Lawyers for Brittany Higgins have asked a court to exempt her from testifying in the defamation lawsuit brought against her by Senator Linda Reynolds.

Senator Reynolds is suing her former staffer Ms Higgins and her husband David Sharaz over a series of social media posts the couple made in 2022 and 2023.

The reports were critical of Senator Reynolds’ handling of Ms Higgins’ allegation that she was raped in Parliament House by her then colleague Mr Lehrmann in 2019.

He was charged with rape and was due to go to trial in 2022, but the trial was halted due to juror misconduct.

The charges were dropped and Mr Lehrmann continues to maintain his innocence.

Mr Lehrmann lost a subsequent civil libel case in April this year when the Federal Court found, on the balance of probabilities, that Mr Lehrmann had raped Ms Higgins in Parliament House. He is appealing that decision.

Lawyers for Brittany Higgins have told the Western Australian Supreme Court they are not required to call the former political aide to give oral evidence in the long-running trial against her.

Mrs Young said there was no need to involve Mrs Higgins in the proceedings for her to win the case.

Senator Linda Reynolds returned to Canberra on Monday as her defamation trial against her former staffer in Perth continued.

The court was also told that Ms Higgins’ medical condition, similar to that of Ms Reynolds’ former chief of staff Fiona Brown, would mean she would be excused from giving evidence.

Mrs Higgins, currently pregnant and living in France, was initially due to testify in the case for a week.

SENATOR MAY HAVE HAD A DIFFICULTY IN FUTURE ELECTIONS

Liberal Party WA chair Jeremy Buxton’s select committee told the court on Monday that when a senator made up a story it usually backfired and the senator would have had “difficulty” getting their name on the ballot paper for the next election.

Mr Buxton was testifying on whether Ms Higgins’ allegations could jeopardise the senator’s chances of running again for the Liberal Party.

He said that even if there were no criminal offences, it would still work against members if they saw that they had made mistakes.

He said there had been instances in the past where senators within the Liberal Party in Western Australia had been demoted.

Mr Buxton told the court he had not discussed the matter with his Liberal Party colleagues but there may have been negative attitudes among some of them.

He said some people may have judged the senator more harshly because he was a woman who did not support her young female colleague.

“That would put her at a disadvantage compared to other colleagues who did not have to answer those questions,” he said.

“She would have struggled to get third place (on the ballot).

Ms Higgins’ lawyers, Rachael Young and Kate Pedersen. Photo: NewsWire/Sharon Smith

SENATOR’S HEALTH IMPROVED IN 2022

Senator Reynolds’ Canberra GP, Dr Antonio Di Dio, gave evidence in the senator’s defamation trial, which is now in its third week.

Dr Di Dio first saw Senator Reynolds in Parliament House on 23 February 2021 and said she was very anxious and stressed.

“I was asked to see her because of her acute anxiety,” he said.

According to Dr Di Dio, the senator was experiencing chest pains and so arranged an emergency referral to hospital in Canberra.

He said there was some concern that she would need to be seen urgently, so he arranged for a local cardiologist to see her.

When he saw her again five days later, her blood pressure had returned to normal, he told the court.

He also referred her to a clinical psychologist and a psychiatrist, as he was concerned about her high level of anxiety and the significant impact it was having on her.

He said it caused her a lot of grief.

Liberal Party elder Jeremy Buxton leaves the High Court in Perth

During questioning by defense attorney Kate Pedersen, Dr. Dio said the senator’s mental health improved in 2022.

Dr Di Dio told the court there was no doubt that the senator was much better than the “terrible acute period from the moment we first met”.

“She was still on a significant amount of medication, but the record shows she was stable and taking care of herself,” he said.

According to Dr Di Dio, the reports he received about the senator’s heart condition after she was hospitalised are not sufficient to determine whether someone is at risk of dying.

HUGE CALL IS MADE OVER FIONA BROWN EVIDENCE

On Monday, Judge Tottle will decide whether the senator’s former chief of staff, Fiona Brown, will be required to testify in person at the trial.

Ms Brown’s lead lawyer, Dominique Hogan-Doran, last week presented the court with a confidential report and medical certificate requesting that Ms Brown be excused from giving evidence in court.

It is expected that Ms Brown will be able to give her evidence in the form of a written statement.

Rachel Young, Ms Higgins’ lawyer, said they had no problem with Ms Brown’s proposed order and did not want to embarrass her by bringing her to court to give evidence.

Senator Reynolds’ attorney, Martin Bennett

She said that as long as what Ms Brown’s lawyers told them was consistent and accurate with what had been reported to the court, they would not oppose Ms Brown’s release.

Senator Reynolds’ lawyer, Martin Bennett, said he did not expect any argument and agreed a suppression order should be imposed.

He also told the court that they may process the witness list earlier than expected, which could result in Ms Higgins being able to give her evidence earlier than August 26.

But her defense and Judge Tottle are likely to oppose that, saying it could be logistically difficult for her.

The process continues.