Prominent journalist Lisa Wilkinson is locked in a legal struggle against Network 10 in the NSW Supreme Court over the immediate payment of her legal expenses in an upcoming defamation lawsuit against Bruce Lehrmann. Contrary to certain suggestions, Wilkinson is more than capable of handling her own court costs even as the proceedings unfold.
Both parties have been at odds on who should shoulder the immediate settling of a whopping $700,000 legal bill or defer the costs until the end of the defamation case. Amidst the tension, Network 10 has apparently agreed to cover Ms Wilkinson’s “duly incurred” costs, leaving only the timing of the payment unresolved.
Network 10 maintains the standpoint that the significant legal bill only be handled at the end of the proceedings, presently planned to start with a month-long trial on the 20th of November.
The defamation case has arisen from a 2021 interview Wilkinson conducted with Brittany Higgins that aired on The Project. In response, Lehrmann is now suing both Wilkinson and Network 10 in the Federal Court.
Setting the stage for a two-pronged legal face-off, Wilkinson is now also pitted against Network 10 in the NSW Supreme Court over a failed agreement to cover her legal expenses. Wilkinson, who chose to take on her legal representation, accuses the broadcaster of failing to pay two bills amounting to $723,000 in legal fees.
Casting aside Network 10’s legal retainers, Wilkinson enlisted high-profile attorney Sue Chrysanthou SC and Gillis Delaney Lawyers’ partner Anthony Jefferies earlier this year. Both her legal team and Network 10’s lawyers, however, yet seem uncertain about when the legal fees should be settled.
Zoe Graus, defending Network 10, argues the issue may be transferred to the Federal Court, while also opposing any expedited decision on the payment issue. Nevertheless, Justice Michael Ball ordered to revisit the case on November 17.
While defending herself, Wilkinson claims that Network 10 had twice agreed to back her, with or without her legal team. On the contrary, the broadcaster has stated that it needs to validate the substantial legal bills while focusing on their defence against Lehrmann’s defamation claim.
Lehrmann has refuted all allegations, which include insinuations in speeches at the National Press Club by Ms Higgins that Lehrmann raped her in Parliament House two years ago. Even as his ACT Supreme Court trial was aborted last year following juror misconduct, no findings have been made against him and he maintains a not guilty plea. His charges were ultimately dropped by the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions due to concerns about Ms Higgins’ mental well-being.
