Brittany Higgins received psychological counselling within days of her alleged rape in Parliament, contradicting her statements to the media that no one was available for months, a defamation trial has heard.
Ms Higgins is battling her former boss, Senator Linda Reynolds, over a series of social media posts the former defence minister believes damaged her reputation.
The senator’s lawyer, Martin Bennett, told a Perth court that a voicemail from a counsellor at the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre revealed Ms Higgins had an appointment within eight days of her alleged sexual assault in the senator’s ministerial suite on March 23, 2019.
“It’s an audio file of (a counsellor) saying: ‘We met last Monday (April 8, 2019),'” he told the Western Australian Supreme Court on Wednesday during submission of documents.
‘This concerns the provision of counselling services to Ms Higgins from 8 April, having been instituted on 1 April.’
Mr Bennett said Ms Higgins told News Corp journalist Samantha Maiden that she tried to contact parliament’s staff support service and was told she would have to wait a month for advice.
“When it comes time for the interview for The Project, you have to wait two months,” he said.
Mr Bennett said documents showed an employee scheme arranged an appointment for Ms Higgins with a psychologist on April 11.
The court has heard explosive claims that Brittany Higgins received counselling just days after the alleged rape.
“Ms Higgins did not make that decision because she was already seeing (the counsellor at the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre),” he said.
“It is this failure by Ms Higgins to mention, either in the interview with The Project or to Ms Maiden, that she was receiving counselling which is relevant… to the support that was offered to her and not accepted.”
Ms Higgins’ lawyer, Rachael Young, said her client’s allegations about a delay related to the employee assistance programme, not the rape crisis centre.
Mr Bennett tendered photographs from Ms Higgins’ diary to the court.
He said it was relevant because it showed the former employee and her husband David Sharaz were working with members of the Australian Labor Party in August 2020 “discussing the plan”.
“(Laura) Tingle is a journalist,” Bennet said as she read other diary entries in court.
‘Drinks with Lucy and Malcolm’ is a reference to Lucy and Malcolm Turnbull and there is a significant note on the card on the right… ‘buy a white dress’.
Senator Linda Reynolds is suing her former staffer over a series of social media posts that the former defence minister says damaged her reputation.
Judge Paul Tottle disagreed, but admitted several emails and phone messages he found helpful.
Mr Bennett said a series of communications revealed Ms Higgins had been with her ex-boyfriend on April 3 when she had taken a day off work and told the senator’s office she had a medical appointment.
“I went out to dinner with my ex boyfriend, stayed overnight at this hotel, went for drinks and a party and didn’t go to the doctor’s appointment I told people I went to,” she said, reading from one of Ms Higgins’ messages.
Mr Bennett said Ms Higgins had deleted 15 messages between her and Mr Sharaz during discovery as he unsuccessfully fought to exclude some evidence from the case.
“We have always said that Ms Higgins, before presenting her phone to the police, checked her messages, (but) this is more than that, this is happening at the time of discovery,” he said.
‘Elimination is the destruction of evidence.’
Mr Bennett sought to file documents relating to Ms Higgins’ $2.4 million settlement with the federal government and Senator Reynolds’s Commonwealth-appointed lawyers “deemed a ‘lying cow’ filing” a year after it had been settled in another legal action.
“These are issues we want to raise to show the legitimacy of Senator Reynolds’ anger at this conduct and her determination to refer it… to the National Anti-Corruption Commission,” he said.
“Not to harass Ms Higgins, but to address something that has been handled poorly.”
Mr. Bennett anticipated further legal action against the lawyers and the government.
Judge Tottle said he would think about the matter.
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National Service for Support and Reparation in Cases of Sexual Abuse 1800 211 028
