The defamation lawsuit involving Brittany Higgins and Sen. Linda Reynolds could be expanded to include more allegations against the senator’s former staffer.
Senator Reynolds filed a third application in the WA Supreme Court after a discovery order revealed a conversation that took place between Ms Higgins and her fiancé David Sharaz.
The conversation consisted of a series of WhatsApp messages in which the pair discussed who should make a social media post on which platform, based on who had the most followers.
The conversation took place before a social media post that formed part of the claim against Mr Sharaz was made in January 2023 and has since been deleted.
The defamation lawsuit involving Brittany Higgins (pictured with fiancée David Sharaz) and Senator Linda Reynolds could be expanded to include more allegations against the Senator’s former staffer
“There was a debate on whose Twitter account it was best to post to,” Senator Reynolds’ lawyer Martin Bennett told reporters outside the court.
“That indicates that they did not act independently of each other, and we are telling the court that this is the argument we want answered.
“There is now a discussion that will be included in Ms Higgins’ proceedings.”
Judgment was also handed down in the case involving Mr Sharaz, with his lawyer Jason MacLaurin telling the court his client wanted little to do with the case.
Mr Sharaz made a consent order but asked for an assessment of damages in relation to the senator’s claim against him after the trial with Ms Higgins.
“We will agree to a verdict where damages are assessed according to the law, the cards may fall however they fall,” Mr MacLaurin said.
Judge Paul Tottle has ordered that Sharaz be restrained from posting messages on social media that are similar to those that allegedly damaged Senator Reynolds’ reputation.
Senator Reynolds has filed a third application in the WA Supreme Court after a discovery order revealed a conversation that took place between Ms Higgins and her fiancé David Sharaz
The court also heard that amendments to Ms Higgins’ defense had been submitted.
Mr Bennett argued that the amendments felt confusing and would be difficult to research, saying they were almost ‘schizophrenic’.
He said that while Ms Higgins was given the signal to make a complaint to the police, she felt pressured not to do so.
“It’s an area that isn’t normally cross-examined,” he said.
Mr Bennett said outside court that the senator had instructed Ms Brown to make a complaint to the AFP, which was the exact opposite of a cover-up.
He said Ms Higgins’ defense stated that the senator asking Ms Brown to make a complaint to the police was a mishandling of the rape allegation.
“That’s the opposite,” he said.
“We have to think about whether or not we break it, we have to have some certainty when we go to court on the case that has been presented in our defense.”
During the proceedings, Judge Tottle did not believe the amendments could derail or delay the trial.
It was the third time this week the case has gone to the WA Supreme Court, where the senator is suing Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz over social media posts they made that she claims were false and damaged her reputation.
Peace talks to settle the claim failed to yield results on Tuesday after a three-hour mediation session was suspended by the court.
On Thursday, Ms. Higgins’ lawyer, Leon Zwier, dropped a bombshell in court by revealing that his client would marry Mr. Sharaz in June.
Mr Zwier had asked the court to give Ms Higgins more time to respond to an application made by Senator Reynolds, who is seeking to obtain a copy of the deed from the Brittany Higgins Protection Trust.
The trust was established in February last year after Ms Higgins received a $2.4 million compensation payment from the Commonwealth.
Senator Reynolds wants to know who the liquidator is and who to sue if Ms Higgins is unable to pay damages from the yet-to-be-determined defamation case.
All parties have been directed to submit any applications or comments by June 17 before procedural instructions take place the following day.