Staffer to whom Brittany Higgins confided rape allegation got $1.48m payout

Fiona Brown, a former political staffer who was the first to confide in Brittany Higgins about her rape allegation, has been awarded a $1.48 million settlement by the Commonwealth. According to the source, Brown claimed that her workplace rights were compromised following Higgins' accusations. The settlement was reached through mediation earlier this month, and it covered her claims that she was made a scapegoat and denied the opportunity to defend herself in response to the scandal.

Brown was the chief of staff for then-Liberal senator Linda Reynolds when Higgins publicly alleged that she had been raped by Bruce Lehrmann at Parliament House. The Federal Court found that Higgins was indeed raped by Lehrmann, but they did not accept Brown's claims that the government or herself had concealed the assault. Brown's Fair Work case centered on allegations that she was unfairly scapegoated and prohibited from defending herself during the government's response to Higgins' allegations.