Brittany Higgins and David Sharaz will return to Australia to face defamation proceedings against them by former defence minister Linda Reynolds.
Senator Reynolds is suing Ms Higgins and her fiancé Mr Sharaz for defamation in the Supreme Court of Western Australia over posts they each made on social media that she claims damaged her reputation.
The matter is set to return to court for a mediation conference on Tuesday and a strategic conference on Wednesday.
Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz permanently relocated to France at the end of last year, having bought a house near Bordeaux.
They had no plans to return to Australia, but it is understood they will voluntarily appear in court next week.
Brittany Higgins (left) and David Sharaz (right) will return to Australia to face defamation proceedings against them by former defence minister Linda Reynolds
The development comes just months after Ms Reynolds sought to freeze Ms Higgins’ assets.
She wrote a letter to Ms Higgins’ lawyer Leon Zwier in December, pointing to reports stating the former political staffer had permanently moved to France.
‘If such reports are true, we consider that an application for freezing orders is appropriate,’ the letter read.
‘Please advise as a matter of urgency your client’s intentions in respect of her travel to France and your availability to confer in respect of our client’s proposed application.’
Linda Reynolds is suing Higgins and Sharaz for defamation in the Supreme Court of Western Australia over posts they each made on social media that she claims damaged her reputation
Ms Higgins was handed a $2.4million compensation settlement by the Commonwealth over claims she was not supported by her bosses, including Ms Reynolds, when she first made her rape allegations in 2019.
She accused her colleague Bruce Lehrmann of raping her in a ministerial office in Parliament House after a night out – accusations Mr Lehrmann has always denied.
After airing her allegations publicly on The Project in 2021, the matter went to a criminal trial in late 2022 but was aborted due to juror misconduct.
A proposed retrial was abandoned due to concerns over Ms Higgins’ mental health and the charge against Mr Lehrmann was dropped.
Ms Higgins’ claims to the media are the subject of ongoing defamation proceedings after Mr Lehrmann sued Channel Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson.
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