Brittany Higgins and David Sharaz flew all the way from France for a mediation hearing with her old boss Linda Reynolds.
But the two parties did not come face-to-face because the West Australian Liberal senator wanted her own room at court.
Fresh details can be revealed from inside the mediation hearing between Ms Higgins, Mr Sharaz and Ms Reynolds on Monday.
It comes as Daily Mail Australia can reveal a planned conference of the parties scheduled for Tuesday has been sensationally scrapped.
Brittany Higgins (right) and David Sharaz (left) were pictured leaving David Malcolm Justice Centre in Perth on Wednesday night after a nine-hour mediation
Senator Reynolds is suing Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz for defamation, individually, in the WA Supreme Court over a series of social media posts that she claims damaged her reputation.
On Monday, Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz travelled to Perth from their new home in Lunas, France for a court-ordered mediation session in the hope they could settle the dispute and avoid a costly six-week trial.
The group walked into court at 10am on Tuesday and left just before 7pm, without a resolution.
Daily Mail Australia understands Ms Reynolds opted for a private room on Tuesday, away from the couple, which meant a mediator had to travel between the parties all day.
It is also understood Ms Higgins was not allowed to bring a support person, which is why her best friend Emma Webster was absent.
Ms Webster was by the side of the Ms Higgins throughout both Bruce Lehrmann’s criminal trial and when Ms Higgins faced court for his defamation action against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson.
The group’s failure to come to an agreement following the nine-hour session could mean the dispute could go to trial later this year.
Heading into court on Tuesday morning, Hs Higgins told reporters she believes everyone was heading into the session ‘in good faith’.
Neither she nor Mr Sharaz answered any questions when they left the court with their lawyers later that evening.
Ms Reynolds left with her lawyer Martin Bennett and her partner Robert Reid.
‘Long day,’ she told waiting media, grinning broadly.
‘It’s still ongoing so it’s not appropriate for me to comment on it yet.’
Monday’s session was held because Judge Marcus Solomon urged the parties to resolve the issue before going to trial, citing immense costs that are often associated with defamation proceedings.
Ms Reynolds’ defamation case centres on social media posts fired off by Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz.
She claims the posts implied that she pressured Ms Higgins not to proceed with a police complaint regarding her alleged rape, and that she interfered with Mr Lehrmann’s criminal trial.
The pairs didn’t come face-to-face with Linda Reynolds (pictured on Wednesday) after the senator requested a separate room while mediation talks between lawyers took place
Ms Higgins is also accused of breaching a non-disparagement clause in a settlement contract she entered in 2021 that prevents her from speaking negatively about Ms Reynolds.
The senator is seeking aggravated damages, an injunction to stop Ms Higgins from publishing allegedly defamatory material, and another injunction to stop her from breaching the settlement contract.
Ms Reynolds is simultaneously suing Mr Sharaz separately for allegedly defaming her in five social media posts, which were allegedly ‘falsely defamatory’ and caused her ‘loss and damage’.
Ms Higgins alleged Mr Lehrmann raped her in Parliament House in 2019, on their former boss Ms Reynolds’ couch. Mr Lehrmann has continually denied the allegations.
Brittany Higgins and her partner David Sharaz are seen leaving the David Malcolm Justice Centre in Perth after flying in from their new home in France
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