LISA WILKINSON battles CHANNEL 10 over mounting legal bills

Lisa Wilkinson, former host of The Project on Network 10, has instigated legal proceedings against the network.

The Daily Telegraph reports the dispute revolves around an alleged agreement, where Network 10 agreed to cover her legal expenses in a defamation suit initiated by Bruce Lehrmann.

In an endeavour to defend herself from the defamation claims stemming from a 2021 interview with Brittany Higgins, which won her a Logie Award, Wilkinson employed the services of renowned barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC and partner at Gillis Delaney Lawyers, Anthony Jefferies.

This move was unconventional, as she did not enlist the aid of Thomson Geer, the law firm traditionally retained by Network 10.

According to documents submitted in the NSW Supreme Court, Wilkinson’s team has pointed out that on two separate occasions, in March and June this year, Network 10 agreed to bear her legal costs, even acknowledging her right to “independently represented” counsel.

However, conflict arose when Network 10 expressed a preference to settle Wilkinson’s legal bills as a lump sum at the end of the Lehrmann trial.

They believed this would permit them to include any “costs orders” awarded in Lehrmann’s favour.

“The plaintiff (would be left) with the burden of having to find the ways and means to fund her defence of the claim to which she had become exposed as an employee,”

the court records detail.

Following this, Wilkinson invoiced Network 10 a sum of $375,728.63 in May. This invoice, however, was rebuffed by the network on the grounds of what they deemed “substantial unnecessary work”.

Precisely what this work entailed remains undisclosed, as highlighted by Wilkinson’s legal representatives.

In a subsequent effort to clarify matters, Wilkinson’s legal team dispatched a revised invoice on 25th September, breaking down costs in greater detail as sought by Network 10. This recalculated amount stood at $353,538.88.

Shortly thereafter, another invoice was issued, this time amounting to $370,017.00.

To date, neither invoice has been settled, as stated by the legal documents.

“The defendant has still not paid the plaintiff any amount in respect of any item of work or any dollar of cost and expense described in the invoices and narrations provided to the defendant,”

In the interest of resolution, Wilkinson is reportedly open to mediation with Network 10.

Commenting on the matter, a representative from Network Ten told The Daily Telegraph,

“The lawyers engaged by Lisa Wilkinson have issued invoices for a very substantial amount of money, in excess of $700,000, and in good governance these need to be justified through due process.

In the meantime, Network 10’s focus is on defending the defamation claim brought by Bruce Lehrmann.”

The defamation trial against Lehrmann is scheduled to commence on 22 November in the federal court, with testimonies expected from both Higgins and Lehrmann.

Wilkinson made headlines last November when she left The Project, just four years after her highly lucrative shift from Channel 9’s morning show, Today.

The high-profile presenter is currently still contracted by the 10 Network despite having not appeared onscreen in 2023.

Her interview with Higgins not only secured her a Logie Award but also nominations for two Walkley Awards. Earlier in the year, Lehrmann initiated legal action against several media entities, counting Network 10 and Wilkinson among them.

SOURCE – The Daily Telegraph