Brittany Higgins has vowed to fight for a better justice system after reports she plans to launch a compensation claim against her former employer and a Coalition minister.
Lawyers for Ms Higgins sent a letter declaring her intention to pursue a compensation claim against her former employer, ex-defence minister Linda Reynolds, sources said.
On Monday morning, Ms Reynolds confirmed to the ABC that Ms Higgins’ lawyers have launched civil action “against her and other parties”.
Bruce Lehrmann has always maintained his innocence, denying there was any sexual contact between the pair.
Ms Higgins declined to comment on reports she was being represented by Canberra workplace lawyer Noor Blumer; the workplace law firm has also not made a comment about the matter.
A retrial of allegations that Ms Higgins had been raped while working for Senator Reynolds was dropped last week.
A question sent to Michaelia Cash, a former attorney-general who also employed Ms Higgins, did not immediately receive a response.
The retrial of Bruce Lehrmann, who denied raping Ms Higgins in Parliament House in 2019, was cancelled this week after an earlier trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.
Mr Lehrmann, also a former adviser to Ms Reynolds, is understood to have been aggrieved by some coverage of the case and also weighing his own options for a civil case.
With no retrial, Mr Lehrmann, who had pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent, retains the presumption of innocence. With no prospect of a retrial, he remains innocent of any alleged rape of Higgins.
Ms Higgins said on Sunday the justice system was a “national shame” in her first comments since news emerged prosecutors in the ACT would drop the trial over concerns for her mental wellbeing.
She said she had felt like the person on trial after having her private life, messages and data publicly exposed and scrutinised.
“This is the reality of how complainants in sexual assault cases are treated,” she wrote in an Instagram post on Sunday morning.
“Their lives are torn apart, their families and friends called to the witness stand and the accused has the legal right to say absolutely nothing.”
Ms Higgins said the criminal justice system failed to deliver outcomes for victims of sexual assault, citing that in the ACT during 2020, only 16 per cent of sexual offences reported to police resulted in a charge.
Only half of those resulted in a conviction.
“I knew the odds were stacked against me from the outset. That is to our national shame,” she said.
“I want to thank the other women who came forward and shared their own experiences.
“I believe you. You were with me every day I walked into that court room and faced him.”
Crisis support is available at Lifeline on 13 11 14
