Bruce Lehrmann had clearly had enough after a full day of cross examination – picking up his bag and racing out of the court after the first week of his defamation hearing against Lisa Wilkinson and Network 10 came to a close.
Mr Lehrmann is suing Wilkinson and the TV network over an interview with Brittany Higgins on The Project on February 15, 2021, during which she first aired her rape allegations against him.
He was not named in that broadcast, but he claims he was identified by friends, colleagues and family members as the man who allegedly raped Ms Higgins in Parliament House on March 23, 2019.
The former Liberal staffer strongly denies the allegations, and continued to deny them during the third day of defamation proceedings in Sydney’s Federal Court on Friday.
The hearing has turned into a quasi-rape trial, with Ten and Wilkinson opting for a truth defence – which means they must prove that it is more likely that Mr Lehrmann raped Ms Higgins than not.
Mr Lehrmann’s version of events has been picked over by barristers with a fine-tooth comb, as Ten’s barrister Matthew Collins KC fired questions at him for more than two days – scrutinising every skerrick of detail in his evidence.
In some ways, he’s in the fight of his life.
Bruce Lehrmann is pictured walking into the Federal Court on Friday morning
Bruce Lehrmann and Brittany Higgins are pictured, in a white dress and pale blue shirt, The Dock Hotel on March 22, 2019
By the end of the first week, one thing was clear: He has continued to confidently say that he did not have sex with Ms Higgins, consensually or otherwise.
In response to questions about whether he ‘pashed’ Ms Higgins, touched her thigh and put his arm around her before they went back to Parliament House that night, he defiantly said ‘no’.
When Dr Collins asked why a colleague who was with them on the night, Lauren Gain, said she saw the couple ‘pashing’, Mr Lehrmann accused her of fabricating evidence.
When asked whether he found Ms Higgins unconscious on a couch in Linda Reynolds’ ministerial suite, took his pants off, pushed her leg open and had penetrative sex with her, he said: ‘No, that didn’t happen.’
And when he was asked whether he allegedly continued having sex with Ms Higgins, even after – as Dr Collins put to him – she allegedly woke up, started crying and saying ‘stop’ about six times, Mr Lehrmann asserted: ‘That did not happen, Dr Collins.’
He also denied trying to get Ms Higgins drunk, monitoring her drinks throughout the night, moving three drinks towards her at the same time while saying ‘all hers, all hers’, and ordering her to skol her last drink.
‘That did not happen,’ he told the court.
Brittany Higgins is pictured, centre, during the criminal trial last year
Brittany Higgins is pictured after she entered Parliament House with Bruce Lehrmann in the early hours of March 23, 2019
But in other sections of the cross-examination on Friday, his memory appeared to waver – particularly when it came to the amount of interactions he had with Ms Higgins on the night in question, the number of drinks he bought, and how he paid for those drinks.
Dr Collins began by scrutinising evidence Mr Lehrmann had given on Wednesday, while he was being examined by his own barrister Steven Whybrow SC.
Mr Lehrmann told the court on Wednesday he had minimal interactions with Ms Higgins that night because they were out with a range of colleagues, and maintained he did not buy her any drinks.
Credit card and bank statements tendered to the court suggested he only spent $16 at The Dock Hotel, which he agreed was not enough to buy more than about two drinks at a ‘trendy bar’ on a Friday night.
Mr Lehrmann’s evidence, at that point, was consistent: He did not believe that he bought more than two drinks at The Dock Hotel, one for himself and one for his colleague, Austin Wenke.
Dr Collins said: ‘Be very careful about it, Mr Lehrmann.
‘Did you buy Ms Higgins two vodka drinks in the course of your time at The Dock on the 22nd of March?’
He replied: ‘I don’t believe I bought two rounds.’
CCTV from the pub on the night in question was then played for the court.
Lisa Wilkinson is pictured in green, with members of her legal team, on Friday morning
He bought beers to begin with. He then went back to the bar and bought three more drinks, including one for Ms Higgins.
Footage then showed Mr Lehrmann buying another two drinks, including another for Ms Higgins.
Dr Collins asked Mr Lehrmann: ‘Do you agree that we’ve just seen you and Ms Higgins returning to the courtyard area from the bar area, each of you carrying a spirits-based drink with vodkas?’
Mr Lehrmann replied: ‘I can’t recall what type of [drink].’
Dr Collins said: ‘At 23.09 that was you handing a card over to pay for the drinks that you had just ordered for yourself and Ms Higgins.’
Mr Lehrmann agreed, but insisted he only had two bank cards – a credit card and a debit card – and could not say how he paid for the other drinks, or why those charges didn’t come up on his statements.
He was forced to concede that he did buy drinks for Ms Higgins and he did buy more than one round, and spent a portion of the evening in her company.
It was undoubtedly a tough day for Mr Lehrmann. He needed a break earlier in the day, while being questioned about drink purchases.
Court finished ten minutes early on Friday following a line of questions about the day he lost his job in Senator Reynolds’ office, when she was the defence industry minister.
Mr Lehrmann, who is not allowed to speak to his lawyers until his cross-examination is over, picked up his bag and high-tailed out of the court.
The hearing will resume on Monday.