Glamorous criminal lawyer reveals she is in a relationship with Christian Porter after rumoured sightings of romantic strolls near Coogee beach
- Christian Porter and criminal lawyer Karen Espiner have confirmed relationship
- ‘We are in the early stages,’ Ms Espiner told the Sydney Morning Herald
- There were rumours the pair had been seen on romantic strolls in Sydney’s east
- Mr Porter is from Perth, Western Australia, and has been fighting defo action
A well-regarded criminal lawyer has confirmed she is in a relationship with former attorney-general Christian Porter, after sightings in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
Rumours had abounded that Mr Porter, 50, from Perth, Western Australia, had been seen on beachside strolls with lawyer Karen Espiner in Coogee recently.
On Wednesday evening Ms Espiner, co-founder of local firm Younes + Espiner Lawyers, confirmed that the pair had struck up a romance.
‘We are in the early stages of a relationship,’ Ms Espiner told the papers’ CBD column in a statement.
‘That relationship has not been a secret but it is a private matter which we do not intend to talk about in any detail.’
Love has blossomed between former attorney-general Christian Porter and specialist criminal lawyer Karen Espiner, from Coogee in Sydney’s east, it was confirmed on Wednesday night
In a statement issued on Wednesday evening, Ms Espiner said the relationship wasn’t a secret but a ‘private matter’. Mr Porter had been seen far away from home in Coogee recently
The couple’s romance appears to have come to light after the pair were reportedly seen together on a plane to Canberra.
Mr Porter, a divorced father-of-two, had been in Sydney – where he settled his defamation case with the ABC on Monday – before flying to the nation’s capital for Parliament on Tuesday.
Gossip about the pairing has been whizzing around Sydney’s legal district since March but hadn’t been confirmed until now.
At a press conference this week, Mr Porter sounded emotional as he spoke of close supporters who had backed him as he sued the public broadcaster.
Christian Porter announced he and wife Jennifer had split in 2020
‘It’s often said that during difficult times you get to know who your friends are,’ he said.
‘For me, the number of fairweather friends have been few.
‘There have been a select group of people – and they know who they are – who have showed a level of courage in standing by me, even when the modern day lynch mob was targeting not just me, but anyone close to me.
‘They demonstrated a type of courage to me that I will never forget.’
The ABC amended a February 2021 article reporting on a historical rape allegation against Mr Porter as a result of its settlement.
Mr Porter had always vehemently denied the claim and secured a note from the ABC saying it ‘regretted’ their article could be misinterpreted as an accusation of guilt against the Cabinet minister.
Ms Espiner said in a statement that she wasn’t involved in the defamation action. She was approached for comment by Daily Mail Australia.
Mr Porter split with his wife Jennifer, also a lawyer, in January 2020, after thirteen years together. ‘It is a mutual decision and no third parties are involved,’ they said.
‘We have been working hard to see what could be possible because first and foremost we are loving parents to two wonderful little children.’