Bruce Lehrmann discussed payment of about $200,000 for his participation in an exclusive interview with Seven’s Spotlight program and was reimbursed by the network for money spent on cocaine and sex workers, which were euphemistically invoiced as “pre-production expenses”, a court has heard.
Former Seven producer Taylor Auerbach also told the federal court how he built a rapport with Lehrmann over several months in order to secure an exclusive interview, claiming that Lehrmann “appreciated the fact that I wasn’t sitting with the rest of the feminazis in the press pack”.
The dramatic evidence from Auerbach, some of which Justice Michael Lee described as “sordid”, came after the reopening of the defamation trial brought by Lehrmann against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson over an interview with Brittany Higgins broadcast on The Project in 2021.
Channel Seven has denied all allegations.
The case had closed and a ruling was due to be handed down on Thursday, before Auerbach’s 11th-hour allegations prompted it to be reopened.
Auerbach was asked about an invoice, produced to the court on Friday by the Seven Network, from 14 January 2023 from Lehrmann for a hire car and a George Street bar. Another item was a $750 charge for “pre-production expenses”.
Auerbach alleged that line item referred to “Mr Lehrmann’s expenditure on cocaine and prostitutes”.
“He indicated to me he needed to replenish his bank account after the bender,” Auerbach claimed.
Matthew Richardson SC, for Lehrmann, argued in closing submissions that it was implausible “that the two nights of prostitutes and illicit drugs were covered by a $750 entry for pre-production expenses”.
“That was two nights with him and Mr Auerbach with the drugs and the prostitutes – even the least worldly person in this room, which regrettably is probably me, Your Honour, [would know] that that is a stretch.”
Although Lee clarified that this was the only expense that Seven had been able to find and submit to the court.
This expense was separate to the $10,000 charge to the Seven credit card made by Auerbach in November 2022 for a Thai massage parlour.
“Mr Auerbach did spend in excess of $10,000 on Mr Lehrmann on Seven’s corporate credit card to pay for prostitutes and drugs. And Mr Lehrmann benefited from those purchases,” Matt Collins KC , for Ten, said in his closing statement.
Collins said Auerbach was to be believed when he said the credit card charge was for Lehrmann’s benefit and was all part of an attempt to get him to sign on the dotted line for an interview.
“And somehow, in the perverse universe in which this program was apparently operating, Mr Auerbach was not terminated for spending more than $10,000 on the company credit card on illicit activities in connection with getting the story of the year,” Collins said.
Lee, who appeared frustrated at several points by the relevance of the fresh evidence, quizzed Collins about why Seven allegedly paying for sex workers and drugs was relevant to his findings in the defamation case.
“I’m just concerned how far we’re going down into what is increasingly looking like a rabbit hole,” he said.
Lee said that Auerbach’s aim in giving evidence to the court was “to do as much damage to his former employer as possible”, commenting that it was “rare to see as much animus” as was displayed in the video of Auerbach destroying his former colleague Steve Jackson’s golf clubs, which was played to the court on Thursday.
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Lee said that just because Auerbach was motivated by animus did not mean he wasn’t telling the truth, but cautioned counsel: “Don’t put him up as some noble, public-interested individual.”
Auerbach also alleged on Friday that he had discussions with Lehrmann’s media adviser John Macgowan about how much the former Liberal staffer might expect to be paid for an interview.
Macgowan knew someone who had been paid $150,000 for an interview with Seven and raised this figure with Auerbach, the court heard. The text messages released by the court revealed the person to be Vikki Campion, who is now married to Barnaby Joyce.
“So he said, ‘I know what she got, so we’ll start from there’, and we sort of talked about vaguely $200,000,” Auerbach said.
The former Spotlight producer claimed the two men discussed how they might pay Lehrmann indirectly through a trust, rather than giving Lehrmann the funds directly.
While it was not illegal, Seven has always insisted Lehrmann was not paid and it only helped with accommodation during filming, and Lehrmann only declared the $104,000 in rental accommodation he was paid.
Ten alleges that Lehrmann and Seven have not been honest about the financial benefits received by the interviewee.
Key to the evidence put forward by Auerbach was his claim that Lehrmann shared confidential documents with Seven ahead of his Spotlight interview, including airdropping documents to Auerbach’s phone during a golf trip to Tasmania, paid for by Seven.
In Ten’s submission they allege that Lehrmann breached his Harman undertaking by airdropping documents and providing messages from the criminal trial.
The alleged supply of any documents to Seven is relevant to the defamation case because Seven, Lehrmann and Lehrmann’s counsel have all denied such material passed between them.
If proven, the evidence could go both to Lehrmann’s credibility and raise questions as to whether he abused the court process, which may affect what damages he is awarded should his claim be successful.
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