Brittany Higgins' $2.4 Million Payout Trust Under Scrutiny in New Lawsuit by Senator Linda Reynolds

Senator Linda Reynolds has launched another lawsuit against Brittany Higgins and the company overseeing the trust fund protecting the former political staffer's multimillion-dollar payout. The fresh lawsuit comes as the senator's defamation trial against Higgins over a series of social media posts comes to a close.

Higgins received a $2.4m commonwealth compensation payment in December 2021 for hurt and distress, lost earnings, medical expenses and legal fees following her alleged rape in Parliament House. According to a writ lodged in the supreme court of Western Australian by Reynolds’ legal team on Thursday, Power Blazers Pty Ltd acts as trustee for the Brittany Higgins Protective Trust. The company was appointed to the role after Higgins retired as trustee in February 2022. Reynolds claims the trust was created “with the intention of defeating or delaying” Higgins’ creditors, of which she is one.

The senator wants the court to void the trust and for the money, which is believed to be a significant portion of the $2.4m payout, to be transferred back into Higgins’ control. '(We) seek to have what remains of the $2.4 million returned into the estate of Ms Higgins in the event Senator Reynolds was successful in this action it would be available under the Civil Judgement Enforcements Act to recover against,' the senator's lawyer, Martin Bennett, told reporters outside the court in reference to her claim for aggravated damages.

The senator believes a post on July 4, 2023 carries imputations she engaged in a campaign of harassment towards Ms Higgins. Ms Higgins' defence to the defamation claim for that post is truth, pointing to the senator's public statements questioning her compensation settlement with the Commonwealth. This includes Senator Reynolds' remarks that the payment and the circumstances leading to the settlement should be referred to the National Anti-Corruption Commission. The senator has said her concerns are serious and reasonable, including that she was not shown Ms Higgins' allegations against her before the settlement and she had a right to question it.

Psychiatrist's Reports Under Scrutiny

The fresh lawsuit comes as Reynolds' defamation trial against Higgins nears its end. In a twist, Reynolds’ lawyer, Martin Bennett, was denied a late bid in court on Thursday to call the psychiatrist who authored a report used to help determine Higgins’ $2.4 million payout to give evidence. Bennett told the court a document subpoena had revealed doctor Julio Clavijo wrote two reports in early 2022 about Higgins on the same day that were significantly different. The Perth court heard the doctor's evidence and details about his communication with Ms Higgins' lawyers at the time were relevant to one of the former staffer's Instagram posts.

Why Were the Reports Different?

But Justice Paul Tottle said any evidence the doctor could provide would be too remote from the harassment issue to help him make his judgement. “Whether [Reynolds] engaged in a campaign of harassment towards [Higgins] will be resolved by reference to what the [senator] did,” he said. Bennett asked for leave to refer the reports to the National Anti-Corruption Commission. That matter will be determined in the coming weeks.

A Complex Legal Battle

The allegations against Reynolds, and the nature of her defense, demonstrate the complex legal battle that Higgins has faced. Higgins alleged she was raped in the early hours of 23 March 2019 in Reynolds’ office by her then colleague, Bruce Lehrmann. Lehrmann has always vehemently denied raping Higgins and pleaded not guilty at the October 2022 criminal trial in the ACT, which was aborted due to juror misconduct. A second trial did not proceed due to prosecutors’ fears for Higgins’ mental health. As part of Lehrmann’s failed defamation trial against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson, a federal court in April found that, on the balance of probabilities, he raped Higgins. Lehrmann is appealing against the defamation verdict in his case.

The saga has highlighted the complexities of sexual assault cases, the impact of public scrutiny on victims, and the difficulties in navigating the legal system. While the focus has been on Higgins' alleged rape, the legal proceedings have also shed light on the power dynamics within Parliament and the challenges of seeking justice for those who have experienced sexual violence.