Quinlan CJ with Kirbs
Chief Justice Peter Quinlan of the WA Supremes has decided that rape survivor Brittany Higgins must disclose the identity of the trustee for her protective trust to Senator Linda Reynolds (Lib. WA), who its suing her former staffer for defamation.
Higgins sought orders to preserve the confidentiality of documents produced to Reynolds. The CJ agreed because the normal implied Harman undertakings have not been sufficient to prevent Reynolds leaking private documents to Janet Albrechtsen at The Australian as part of an inflammatory campaign against the defendant:
“I would have to be living under a rock not to know, that litigation involving Ms Higgins is litigated as much in the public arena as it is in the courts: court documents are provided to media outlets prior to their being served or even filed, speeches and ‘door-stop’ interviews are regularly conducted on the doors of the courts and self‑appointed experts dissect, analyse and predict the outcome of court proceedings before they have even begun.
The Court, however, can and should control the dissemination of private and sensitive documents that have neither been tendered nor adduced in evidence. This is particularly so in relation to documents produced under compulsion such as will occur in this case.
Given the history of this and related matters, and the voracious appetite for such documents concerning Ms Higgins, I consider that it is in the interests of justice to require express, rather than implied, undertakings as to the possession and use of any documents discovered pursuant to my orders.”
Albrechtsen is to be found among a gaggle of neo-reactionary woman who have rallied to Bruce Lehmann’s cause, including Bettina Arndt, Margaret Cunneen and Lady Penny Street. Lehrmann was found on the civil standard to have raped Brittany Higgins on March 23, 2019.
Among the imputations sued on is a claim arising from an Instagram post by Higgins that Reynolds harassed her through the media and in the parliament.
Brittany Higgins defence pleadings go into this chapter and verse, with details of Reynolds’ harassment through leaks to Albrechtsen.
This included correspondence to the senator from lawyers for the Commonwealth concerning information about the mediation of the complaint Higgins had brought against her employers, Reynolds and Madam Cash, following her rape in Parliament House.
The lawyers for the Commonwealth advised that legal professional privilege applied to the correspondence and to maintain confidentiality about the details of the mediation.
Nonetheless, Reynolds supplied that correspondence to Albechtsen together with her response to it.
On December 15, 2022, an article by Albrechtsen and sidekick Stephen Rice appeared in The Australian, with the headline, Linda Reynolds muzzled in Brittany Higgins lawsuit defence.
Other confidential documents were covertly supplied to Albrechtsen, which formed the basis of a beat-up questioning the settlement between the Commonwealth and Higgins.
See: Brittany Higgins’ compensation payout clouded by ‘secret’ email
This has been pleaded as part of the justification defence in relation to Reynolds’ claim that she harassed the defendant.
Brittany Higgins’ second further re-amended defence is here.
≈ ≈ ≈
Perth by night
Our sister publication, the newsletter 500Words.com.au, last week looked at the implications for Higgins’ trust and whether it was safe from attack.
The personal injury settlement money from the Commonwealth was paid into the trust, seen as a necessary protective mechanism in the context of Higgins’ mental health.
Martin Bennett from the eponymous Perth law shop known as “Bennett”, has indicated that Reynolds is looking to Brittany Higgins’ personal injury payout to satisfy an award of costs and damages she might receive from the WA Supremes.
Mr Bennett suggested that his client has mortgaged her house to fund the litigation.
“It is likely to be the only process by which Senator Reynolds recovers damages and costs in the event she is successful.
“She’s about to embark on a very expensive trial. If you’re out of pocket, and you’ve mortgaged your house to pay for litigation, recovering those costs is something you try and do as soon as possible.”
If possible. According to Linda’s statement of registerable interests, no new home loans have been notified.
The trust was created on December 14, 2022, and Reynolds issued her concerns notice to Higgins six months later on July 5, 2023.
There’s another wrinkle. Damages for personal injury are exempt from creditors’ claims under the Bankruptcy Act, see section 116(2)(g).
Outside court: Reynolds and Martin Bennett
Our Linda got a clean bill of health from Justice Michael Lee in the Lehrmann defamation case, plus a certificate of good housekeeping. So, it’s puzzling that she would encumber her house to go after a young woman who was raped on her couch.
No doubt it will be sorted out in the Wild West’s justice system.
Meanwhile, we are advised that the ACT Integrity Commission and the National Anti-Corruption Commission are “making progress” with their investigations into Cossack Sofronoff’s leaks to Albrechtsen as part of a covert plan to assist her campaign against the criminal prosecution of Bruce Lehrmann by the DPP, Shane Drumgold.