Bruce Lehrmann settles defamation case against News Corp, Samantha Maiden

Former federal Liberal political staffer Bruce Lehrmann has dropped his defamation case against News Corp after the parties reached an out-of-court settlement.

Federal Court records show Lehrmann’s lawyers filed a notice of discontinuance on Tuesday afternoon.

Bruce Lehrmann has maintained his innocence over rape allegations he faced, which were discontinued last year.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

The news outlet said no damages had been paid but “a contribution has been made to his legal costs” as part of the settlement.

Lehrmann’s claims against Network Ten and the ABC remain active.

The news.com.au articles at the centre of Lehrmann’s lawsuit against News Corp’s News Life Media and national political editor Samantha Maiden have been amended to include an editor’s note, which states: “Bruce Lehrmann commenced defamation proceedings claiming that this article accused him of sexually assaulting Brittany Higgins.

“These proceedings were discontinued and settled on terms satisfactory to Mr Lehrmann and the publisher of this website.

“News.com.au notes that a criminal charge of sexual assault was brought against Mr Lehrmann and later dropped. News.com.au does not suggest that he was guilty of that charge.”

News Corp did not otherwise amend the articles or issue an apology.

Lehrmann filed defamation proceedings against Ten and News Corp in February over interviews with his former colleague Higgins on The Project and news.com.au, broadcast and published on February 15, 2021.

The proceedings were set to be heard together, and Federal Court Justice Michael Lee had raised the prospect of a jury being empanelled to determine factual issues in the case.

News.com.au ran a statement on its own website after the settlement. It reported that “editor-in-chief Lisa Muxworthy said ... no damages were paid to Mr Lehrmann”.

“A contribution has been made to his legal costs following his successful application to the Federal Court to extend the limitation period to launch defamation action,” the article said.

“Muxworthy said news.com.au stands by the reporting which examined how Ms Higgins’ allegation was handled by political leaders and institutions and the fallout that followed.”

Lehrmann alleged the articles, which were published on February 15, 2021, conveyed a series of defamatory meanings, including that he raped Higgins in then-defence industry minister Linda Reynolds’ office in 2019. He denies the rape allegation.

He was not named in the articles, but his lawyers had argued he was identified via other means.

Had the case proceeded to trial and Justice Lee had found Lehrmann was identified and defamed as he alleged, News Corp was seeking to rely in part on a defence of truth.

This would have required News Corp to prove on the balance of probabilities that Lehrmann raped Higgins in Parliament House in 2019. While this is less onerous than the criminal standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt, the so-called Briginshaw principle applies in civil cases involving serious allegations and requires courts to proceed cautiously in making grave findings.

Lehrmann was named in the media in August 2021 after he was charged with sexual intercourse without consent.

He pleaded not guilty to the charge. His trial was aborted in October last year due to juror misconduct. The charge was later dropped altogether amid concerns about Higgins’ mental health. He has always maintained his innocence.

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