Lehrmann's Defamation Appeal Hears Claims of Unfair Denial of Justice

Bruce Lehrmann, the man at the center of the defamation case against Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson, faced a three-day appeal hearing in the Full Court of the Federal Court, with his lawyer, Zali Burrows, claiming he was denied natural justice during the trial. Mr. Lehrmann is seeking to overturn a civil finding that he sexually assaulted Brittany Higgins inside Parliament House, a verdict made by Justice Michael Lee in April 2024. Ms. Burrows argued that the case against her client was built on a "totally different type of rape" than the one Justice Lee ultimately found, and that Mr. Lehrmann was not afforded procedural fairness due to the absence of certain questions during cross-examination. Justice Wigney pushed back on the claim, suggesting that Mr. Lehrmann's defense barristers had objected to questions about consent, and that he would have maintained his claim of no sex occurring even if questioned on a different version of the assault.

Key Takeaways:

• The appeal grounds argue that Justice Lee erred in finding that Mr. Lehrmann raped Ms. Higgins, as the facts found were never put to him in cross-examination.
• Ms. Burrows claims there were numerous discrepancies between the allegations relied on by Ten and Justice Lee's ultimate findings.
• Justice Wigney questioned the logic behind Ms. Burrows' client's appeal grounds, asking what she expects her client would have been asked in cross-examination if the specific details of the sexual assault had been put to him.
• The court hears that Mr. Lehrmann knew Ms. Higgins was not consenting on the night in question, as opposed to "non-advertent recklessness".
• Ten's barrister, Matthew Collins KC, describes Ms. Burrow's submission as "an astonishing submission".
• The trial judge's findings, which rejected Western Australia's qualified privilege defence, are also being contested by Wilkinson's legal team.

Statistics:

• The defamation case began with a month-long trial in April 2024.
• Justice Michael Lee delivered his judgment in April 2024.
• The appeal grounds argue that Justice Lee erred in finding that Mr. Lehrmann would only have been "entitled to a mere $20,000 in damages".
• The court hears that Mr. Lehrmann claimed to have been taken by surprise by Justice Lee's findings.
• The trial judge's strongly-rejected qualified privilege defence is being contested by Wilkinson's legal team.

Sources:

• "Man can't afford barrister in attempt to overturn rape finding." By Tim Piccione.