Linda Reynolds Initiates Bankruptcy Against Brittany Higgins

coin Linda Reynolds, a former defence minister and member of the Western Australian Liberal Party, has initiated bankruptcy proceedings against Brittany Higgins. This move comes in the wake of Reynolds' defamation victory over Higgins in August, where she was awarded more than $1 million in damages and legal costs.

On Friday, Reynolds escalated her legal pursuits by filing actions in the federal court, targeting not only Higgins but also her husband, David Sharaz. This legal strategy follows a significant court ruling earlier this year, where Higgins was ordered to compensate Reynolds with $315,000 in damages, along with an additional $26,109 in interest. This decision was made after a judge in the WA Supreme Court determined that Higgins had defamed Reynolds through social media posts.

According to the court's ruling, Sharaz shares joint responsibility for the damages due to his involvement in disseminating a defamatory tweet and Instagram story. The couple was also mandated to cover 80% of Reynolds' legal expenses, a total that is projected to exceed $1 million.

Justice Paul Tottle, who presided over the case, ruled that an Instagram story posted by Higgins on July 4, 2023, was indeed defamatory. The post included a screenshot of headlines discussing Reynolds' plans to refer Higgins' $2.445 million personal injury settlement to the federal anti-corruption body, while also accusing Reynolds of mishandling Higgins' alleged rape and conducting a campaign of harassment against her.

Linda Reynolds Initiates Bankruptcy Against Brittany Higgins While Tottle determined that one post was defamatory, he acknowledged that Higgins had successfully defended another post in which she accused Reynolds of “silencing” survivors of sexual assault. The court found that Higgins' legal team had established valid defenses, including honest opinion and fair comment.

In September, Higgins' legal representatives filed an appeal against the court's judgment and the orders concerning the payment of Reynolds' legal fees. During the trial, Reynolds' team argued that the senior Liberal senator had been unfairly portrayed as a “villain” within Higgins' narrative of political cover-up, stemming from allegations made in February 2021. Higgins claimed she was sexually assaulted by a colleague in Reynolds' ministerial office in March 2019 and felt unsupported by her boss.

Regulation Higgins, in interviews with news.com.au and The Project, stated that her allegations of sexual assault created a political dilemma for Reynolds and the broader Morrison government as they approached the 2019 federal election. The junior Liberal staffer expressed feeling pressured to choose between advancing her career by working on the upcoming federal election in Perth or taking a step back to work remotely from the Gold Coast, where her support network resided.

The court proceedings revealed that Higgins had sought media attention to push for change within the environment of Parliament House following her alleged assault. Her lawyer, Rachael Young SC, indicated that Higgins experienced both professional and personal isolation, believing that remaining silent was necessary due to the political implications of her allegations.

https://coinzn.org/ This verdict arrived over a year after a federal court judge ruled against Bruce Lehrmann in his defamation suit against Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson for airing Higgins' sexual assault allegations. Lehrmann has consistently denied the allegations of rape.

The unfolding legal saga between Linda Reynolds and Brittany Higgins underscores the complexities of defamation law in Australia, particularly in the context of Australian politics and the Liberal Party. As the proceedings continue, the implications of this case may resonate beyond the courtroom, influencing discussions around accountability and the treatment of sexual assault allegations in the political arena.