Bruce Lehrmann asked if a "good looking" Brittany Higgins could be invited out to drinks weeks before he allegedly raped her in Parliament House, a court has heard.
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Nicky Hamer, a former Liberal staffer who worked alongside Lehrmann and Ms Higgins, gave evidence of the conversation, which she said took place on March 2, 2019.
"Bruce made a comment about Brittany being good looking and asked me if I knew her," Ms Hamer told the Federal Court on Wednesday.
"He asked me just to see if she was free to pop down to the pub."
Lehrmann is suing Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson for defamation over a February 2021 report on The Project regarding Ms Higgins' allegations.
She claims she was raped in the office of their then-boss, Senator Linda Reynolds, in the early hours of March 23, 2019 after a night out drinking in Canberra.
Lehrmann has always denied the allegations, saying that no sexual contact occurred.
Ms Hamer already worked for Senator Reynolds when Ms Higgins joined the office after her former employer, defence industry minister Steven Ciobo, resigned.
The court heard Ms Higgins had gone to local pub the Kingston Hotel to meet up with Ms Hamer, Lehrmann and another staffer, Jesse Wotton, on March 2 before she had been given a job with Senator Reynolds.
When Ms Higgins said she had to leave, Lehrmann took her phone for one or two minutes to prevent her from ordering an Uber and asked her to stay for one more drink, Ms Hamer said.
She told the court she became angry with Lehrmann over this after Ms Higgins left.
Lehrmann allegedly retorted that Ms Hamer was a "feminist" who always felt like she had to stick up for women.
Mr Wotton, who is now deputy state director of the WA Liberal Party, told the court on Wednesday that Ms Hamer had "over-reacted" towards both him and Lehrmann during the argument.
Ms Hamer claimed they had pressured Ms Higgins into staying and the junior staffer would have thought she had lost her opportunity for a job in Senator Reynolds' office because she opted to leave.
"I was very unhappy about that accusation being made," Mr Wotton said.
As a result of the argument, Ms Hamer sent her resignation to Senator Reynolds, telling the court she had been unhappy with her work and had felt "ganged up" on by Lehrmann.
The resignation was withdrawn after a talk with the senator.
Lehrmann was charged in August 2021 over the alleged rape, but his criminal trial in the ACT Supreme Court was derailed by juror misconduct.
Prosecutors did not seek a second trial, citing concerns for Ms Higgins' mental health.
Lehrmann is also before Queensland courts accused of raping another woman twice in Toowoomba in October 2021.
He has not yet entered a plea, but his lawyers have indicated he denies the charges.
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Australian Associated Press
