Two months after losing a high-profile defamation trial, Brittany Higgins is facing bankruptcy proceedings initiated by her former boss, Linda Reynolds. Reynolds has also served bankruptcy papers to Higgins's husband, David Sharaz, as she seeks to recover hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages.
In August, Higgins was ordered to pay Reynolds $315,000 plus $26,000 in interest after she and Sharaz were found to have defamed the former senator in a series of social media posts. Higgins was also ordered to pay 80 percent of Reynolds's legal costs, which Reynolds's lawyer confirmed had exceeded $1 million.
Reynolds filed a creditor's petition against Higgins in the Federal Court on Friday, the same day she said Sharaz had been served bankruptcy papers, giving him 21 days to pay his debt or face formal bankruptcy. Sharaz was found liable for up to $220,000 in damages plus costs.
In a statement, Reynolds confirmed the bankruptcy proceedings, saying, 'It is unfortunate that I have to take this step in this long-running saga. ... what should be plain now is that I am committed to seeing this through to the end.' The new matter is listed for a hearing before a WA registrar in November.
Higgins lodged an appeal against the defamation ruling last month on the last day possible. The defamation action stemmed from social media posts Higgins made starting in 2022, four years after she was raped in Reynolds's office by colleague Bruce Lehrmann. The finding of rape was made last year by Justice Michael Lee in a separate defamation case.
