Case of alleged Brittany Higgins rapist Bruce Lehrmann changes not only lives, but society

It was March 22, 2019, when Bruce Lehrmann and Brittany Higgins socialised with fellow Liberal Party staffers and Department of Defence personnel at The Dock.

They moved in a carefree way, consistent with the fact they could not have known the world would be watching the Kingston bar's CCTV footage three-and-a-half years on.

Yet that is what happened in the ACT Supreme Court as journalists from far and wide gathered, "practically hanging from the rafters", as Chief Justice Lucy McCallum put it, in the hope of telling captive audiences the truth of what happened next.

It was early the following morning, when Ms Higgins alleges Mr Lehrmann, 27, raped her at Parliament House, that the pair's lives were irrevocably changed.

And by the time each entered court in October for Mr Lehrmann's trial, during which he denied any sexual activity with Ms Higgins, this could not have been more clear.

An aura surrounded Ms Higgins, who, by that point, had been in the public eye for nearly two years, having taken her allegations to the media and created what Mr Lehrmann's barrister, Steven Whybrow SC, described as an "unstoppable snowball".

There were hints of the young woman seen on CCTV when she discussed her former career aspirations, with her passion for politics occasionally coming to fore.

Yet those moments were brief and quickly replaced by her enduring disappointment in the Liberal Party system she claimed had brushed her aside as "a political problem", forcing her to choose between keeping her dream job and making a formal complaint against Mr Lehrmann.

Mr Lehrmann, meanwhile, maintained a steely gaze that gave little away outside court.

In court, he generally fixed the same stare on a Moleskine notebook, inside which he wrote copious notes.

But the toll of the public scrutiny on him was laid bare when the world heard his voice for the first time in a police interview, which he began with the same air of confidence as the man captured on surveillance video at The Dock.

Asked to identify himself for the tape by detectives who introduced themselves by name and badge number, a wry smile crossed the 27-year-old's face.

"Bruce Lehrmann," he replied. "No badge number."

Mr Lehrmann went on to adamantly deny Ms Higgins' claim, stating the alleged rape "simply didn't happen".

But his demeanour changed entirely towards the end of the interview, conducted about two months after Ms Higgins went public with her claims, as he discussed the impact of the publicity on him.

"I think you can tell I've - yeah, my world has been rocked," he said, in a rare moment of being lost for words, after discussing mental health issues arising from the allegations.

While no two lives have been altered more by March 23, 2019, a date on which we are likely to never know the full story of what took place, society itself has also changed.

Wherever the truth lies, Ms Higgins' claims have sparked an uncomfortable reckoning and shone a long overdue light into places many would rather have left shrouded in darkness.

The often taboo topics of sexual violence and harassment were thrust into the national conversation by events such as the March 4 Justice rallies across Australia, leading in turn to workplace culture reviews and public awareness that can only be for the betterment of society.

That much was acknowledged even by Mr Lehrmann's counsel at trial, with Mr Whybrow telling the jury these were important conversations about a cause he supported.

The case has also sparked discussion about legislative reform that would reduce the requirements for alleged sexual assault victims to give evidence in the event of retrials, and the ways in which they are questioned while on the witness stand.

Cross-examination is a gruelling experience for all alleged rape victims, who are inevitably accused of lying or making things up by counsel for the people who deny sexually assaulting them.

And Mr Lehrmann's trial was undeniably taxing for Ms Higgins, to the point independent medical experts compiled reports that left ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold SC with the belief a retrial would risk the alleged rape victim's life.

That information is what led Mr Drumgold to drop the case against Mr Lehrmann on Friday, when a friend said Ms Higgins was in hospital receiving "the treatment and support she needs" for her mental health.

The spotlight on Ms Higgins shone brighter than it has on arguably any sexual assault complainant before.

As Mr Drumgold, a prosecutor for more than 20 years, said on Friday, she faced "a level of personal attack" he had never seen.

This was a case that threw up many firsts for even veterans of the criminal justice system as many conventions of court reporting went out the window.

While Ms Higgins was subjected to the same rigorous cross-examination as others who had come before her, alleged sexual assault victims are entitled, under long-standing legislation, to anonymity.

The choice to waive that right and be identified in connection with the case was hers, as was the unusual decision to ventilate her claims with the media before doing so formally with police.

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Ms Higgins explained in court that she stood by this decision and was not ashamed of it because she was determined to have systemic cultural issues in Parliament House addressed.

Speaking out publicly was the best way to achieve this, in her mind, while pursuing a police complaint against Mr Lehrmann was a separate issue.

The result was a case Chief Justice McCallum called "a cause celebre", which generated extraordinary volumes of publicity that proved so problematic in June, when Mr Lehrmann was originally due to stand trial, the matter had to be delayed for months to ameliorate against unfair prejudice.

That prejudice arose when journalist Lisa Wilkinson gave a speech the judge described as having the power to obliterate the distinction between an unproven allegation and proof of Mr Lehrmann's guilt.

Now, with Mr Lehrmann's trial aborted because of juror misconduct and a retrial ruled out, that unproven allegation will never be resolved.

But while uncertainty will always remain, things will never be the same again.

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