Wilkinson, who opted to brief a separate legal team headed by Sydney barrister Sue Chrysanthou, SC, was expected to incur a further $203,500 in legal costs, an affidavit filed by Ten’s solicitor Marlia Saunders says. This included $78,500 for Wilkinson’s senior and junior barristers.
Saunders says in the affidavit that Ten “does not concede that the costs … would be properly incurred by [Wilkinson] or reasonable for the purposes of the indemnity”. This is not an indication that Ten would not cover any of those estimated costs, but that there may be a dispute about some of them.
Ten has already paid Wilkinson $558,548 to cover some of her legal costs of the trial. This is substantially less than the $1.8 million she had originally sought.
However, Wilkinson’s legal costs will also be examined by a referee, which may result in an additional sum being paid or Wilkinson repaying the difference. The referee is expected to provide a report to Lee by December 2.
Burrows, who is acting for Lehrmann in the appeal, said in an affidavit filed in court that her client had become a “social pariah” since Ten’s broadcast. He was not named by the program but was identified six months later when he was charged with one count of sexual assault.
Burrows has argued there is a “significant public interest” in Lehrmann having the opportunity to clear his name and pointed to a series of unflattering news reports and social media posts. One of the screenshots annexed to the affidavit was a post by satirical website The Shovel.
Lehrmann’s ACT Supreme Court trial was aborted in 2022 due to juror misconduct and he did not face a second trial owing to concerns over Higgins’ mental health. He has always maintained his innocence.
A post by satirical news site The Shovel, included in an affidavit filed in court by Bruce Lehrmann’s solicitor, Zali Burrows.Credit: Federal Court of Australia
Lehrmann is seeking to argue as part of his appeal that Lee’s assessment that he would only have been entitled to $20,000 if he had won the defamation case was “wholly inadequate”.
Burrows said in submissions filed in court that Lehrmann “should be awarded either a seven-figure sum or at least hundreds of thousands of dollars”.
Damages for non-economic loss in defamation cases are capped at less than $500,000. The figure is adjusted annually and increased to $478,500 on July 1.
Other types of damages, including aggravated damages and damages for proven economic loss, may be awarded on top. But Lehrmann has not sought damages for economic loss.
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