<!–
<!–
<!– <!–
<!–
<!–
<!–
Lisa Wilkinson’s husband, Peter FitzSimons, has asked a court to order Bruce Lehrmann to pay the author’s legal costs associated with responding to a subpoena in the former political staffer’s successful defamation trial.
Federal Court Judge Michael Lee will hand down his landmark decision early next month after Lehrmann sued Network 10 and Wilkinson over the high-profile Logie-winning journalist’s interview with Brittany Higgins.
Lehrmann alleges he was defamed by The Project broadcast after Higgins alleged she was raped by her former colleague on a couch inside the office of her boss, Senator Linda Reynolds, in March 2019.
He has denied the allegations and his trial in the ACT Supreme Court ended in a mistrial due to jury misconduct before the charges were dropped by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Lisa Wilkinson’s husband, Peter FitzSimons, has asked a court to order Bruce Lehrmann to pay the author’s legal costs.
Lehrmann alleges he was defamed by The Project broadcast after Higgins alleged she was raped by her former colleague on a couch inside the office of her boss, Senator Linda Reynolds, in March 2019.
Author and Sydney Morning Herald columnist Mr FitzSimons was previously quoted in connection with Ms Higgins’ book deal with publisher Penguin Random House.
The court previously heard that Ms Higgins had been paid $108,000 in an advance for a book contract and would have received a further $216,000 from Penguin Random House when she completed the project.
In documents released by the Federal Court on Tuesday, it was revealed that FitzSimons was seeking an order for Lehrmann to pay his “reasonable losses or expenses” associated with complying with the subpoena.
According to documents prepared by Penguin Random House, Ms. Higgins reached an agreement to deliver by January 2022 a 90,000-word book described as “a memoir covering Brittany’s brave personal story.”
He would have been paid $325,000 for the book, according to the agreement signed in March 2021.