Bruce Lehrmann has failed in a final attempt to overturn his defamation loss against Network 10 and multi-award winning TV journalist Lisa Wilkinson, after the High Court declined to hear his appeal.
On Thursday, the High Court refused Lehrmann special leave to appeal, following a Federal Court ruling that found, on the balance of probabilities, that he raped former colleague Brittany Higgins inside Parliament House in March 2019.
In a brief judgment published on the High Court’s website, they confirmed he has been granted “special leave refused with costs.”
The decision effectively ends the long-running legal saga, with Lehrmann now having exhausted all avenues of appeal.
The former Liberal staffer brought the defamation case against Network 10 and Lisa Wilkinson over Higgins’ interview on The Project in February 2021, in which she alleged she was raped by a colleague inside the office of her then boss, Senator Linda Reynolds, after an evening of drinking.
However, Lehrmann has consistently denied the allegations, maintaining he had no sexual contact with his colleague that evening.
He later appealed to the Full Court of the Federal Court, but several findings were made against him by Justice Michael Lee and later Justices Michael Wigney, Craig Colvin, and Wendy Abraham.
Lehrmann then sought to appeal to the High Court, arguing Justice Lee had conducted his “own research” and relied on non-legal material, including academic papers. Network 10 countered that Justice Lee referred to those materials only in the context of legal arguments. In his judgment, Justice Lee also stated: “I am not to rely on matters not in evidence.”
The High Court’s rejection of his application for special leave leaves Lehrmann facing significant legal costs, including about $2 million for the Federal Court trial and an estimated $500,000 for the Full Court appeal. He was also ordered on Thursday to pay Network 10 and Wilkinson’s legal costs for the High Court bid.
Lehrmann, who the court previously heard was an unemployed student, now faces the prospect of bankruptcy. Before lodging his Full Court appeal, he had opposed an application by Network 10 requiring him to provide a $200,000 surety, but was ultimately allowed to proceed without paying it.
Paramount, the parent company of Network 10, has declined to comment on the matter.
