Anthony Albanese’s government is accused of ‘muzzling’ Liberal senators over Higgins’ compo

The Albanian government is facing accusations that it “gagged” liberal senators who would have opposed the compensation claim of Brittany Higgins, who stumbled upon a confidential settlement believed to be worth millions.

Mr Higgins reached a confidential settlement with the Commonwealth on Tuesday over her claims that her Liberal Party bosses did not support her over claims that she was sexually assaulted by fellow staffer Bruce Lehrmann at Parliament House.

The settlement, which was announced by lawyers for Ms Higgins, may have been for up to $3 million for past and future ‘lost profits’ and took just one day of negotiations, an almost unprecedented amount of time. to resolve such matter.

Lawyers for Senator Linda Reynolds (pictured) accused the Commonwealth of trying to silence her opposition to Brittany Higgins’ compensation claims.

Senator Linda Reynolds had challenged Ms Higgins’s claims during Mr Lehrmann’s trial, which was abandoned after a jury broke legal rules and the prosecutor said a second trial could harm Ms Lehrmann’s mental health. Higgin.

Correspondence obtained by the aussie indicates that Senator Reynolds was prepared to further dispute Ms. Higgins’s claims, but was informed by the Commonwealth that it would not honor an agreement to cover her legal fees if she did so.

Lawyers for Senator Reynolds, Clayton Utz, in a letter dated December 9, 2022, accused the Commonwealth of rushing to settle a claim for which there was insufficient evidence.

“It is difficult for us to see how, without further particularization of the causes of action on which Ms Higgins seeks to rely and any supporting evidence thereof, the Commonwealth could be satisfied with the criteria for reaching agreement on the basis of law.” principle and practice’, the letter says.

Clayton Utz’s partner, Ashley Tsacalos, noted that Commonwealth legal directives stated that the cost of defending a “false claim” was not a basis for awarding compensation.

Ms Higgins (centre in photo) and the Commonwealth have reached a confidential compensation agreement, believed to be worth up to $3 million, after just one day of talks.

Such an agreement would require the written advice of the Australian Government lawyer and there is no evidence that this has been done.

According to the correspondence, the Commonwealth’s lawyers demanded to take control of Senator Reynolds’ defense, even though she had previously been denied legal assistance, meaning she got her own lawyers.

Dr. Tsacalos questioned whether any authorizing Albanian government minister could be considered neutral enough by legal standards to set such conditions.

Potential candidates including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Attorney General Mark Dreyfus and Finance Minister Katie Gallagher have all made statements in support of Ms Higgins.

“Given the consistent and public position taken by the Prime Minister and other senior members of his government on the claims made by Ms Higgins, it may be impossible to find a minister in the federal government who has not taken a similar position. and, therefore, that he should not make any decision … to control the conduct of Senator Reynolds’ defense, said Dr. Tsacalos.

Senator Michaelia Cash (pictured), who was Ms Higgins’s boss at the time her sexual assault allegations became public, said she too was left out of the compensation negotiation process.

Senator Michaelia Cash, who became Ms Higgins’ direct boss a couple of months after the alleged assault in 2019, also received similar letters from the Commonwealth advising her that she would not be part of the compensation negotiations.

During Mr. Lehrmann’s trial, which ended in October, Senator Reynolds testified that Ms. Higgins told him during a meeting on April 1, 2019 that she had been very drunk and woke up distraught after the March 23 incident.

Senator Reynold testified that Ms. Higgins did not say that she had been sexually assaulted.

Senator Reynolds’ then-chief of staff, Fiona Brown, said Ms Higgins told her during a meeting on March 28, five days after the alleged rape, that she remembered “he (Lehrmann) was all over me.” .

On April 1, Ms. Higgins was offered support and encouraged to speak to the police.

Former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann (centre in photo) has maintained his innocence against claims that he sexually assaulted Ms Higgins at Parliament House in 2019.

Ms. Higgins applied for and was appointed as a media adviser to Senator Cash in June 2019, but did not inform her new employer of her allegations until October.

In January 2021, Ms Higgins met with The Project host Lisa Wilkinson and a producer to make her allegations and only at that time resigned from her role as media adviser.

Lehrmann pleaded not guilty at his trial and has always maintained his innocence.

After the settlement, both Senator Reynolds and Cash said that since they were not involved in the offset deal, they could not comment on the matter.

“I did not participate in the mediation and the department has not informed me of the outcome,” Senator Reynolds said.

‘I cannot comment on the matter. I did not participate in the mediation and I do not know the outcome,” Senator Cash told news.com.au.

The Attorney General’s department issued the following statement in response to questions from the Daily Mail Australia.

‘In a mediation held on December 13, 2022, the Commonwealth and Ms Higgins settled their claims. At the request of Ms. Higgins, the parties have agreed that the terms of the agreement are confidential,” the statement said.

‘All claims against the Commonwealth are handled in accordance with the Legal Services Instructions 2017.

“The Department is unable to provide further comment on the matter.”