Minister for Defence Industry on 2 March, and all staff, including Ms Higgins, would enter a deferral period in the weeks prior to the election. There was no security in any of these jobs and, as contemporaneous messages discussed below confirm, Ms Higgins understood this to be the case.
340 Work hours were long and, like in many demanding professional offices, it was common for staff members to socialise outside work hours, including by having dinner and drinks.
341 The floorplan of the Minister's Suite is of some significance – although it is not a matter of disputation. In evidence are two marked-up versions of the floorplan, the first being a copy annotated by Mr Lehrmann (Ex 19); and the second being a copy marked-up by Ms Higgins (Ex R1), the latter of which I have reproduced as Annexure C.
342 As can be seen, upon entering the Minister's Suite, one passes through a reception waiting area, at the end of which there is a perpendicular corridor, which leads to the support staff area (where the desks of Mr Lehrmann and Ms Higgins were located) to the left, and to the Minister's office to the right. In the support staff area, there are large window ledges, upon which one can sit, overlooking what is known as the Prime Minister's Courtyard.
IIMr Lehrmann's Knowledge of Ms Higgins
343 Mr Lehrmann told the Court he did not know Ms Higgins or her aspirations in working for Senator Reynolds until their interaction at the Kingston Hotel (colloquially, the "Kingo") on 2 March 2019, discussed below (T175.9–26). He later admitted the pair had interacted in passing, when Mr Lehrmann went to visit Ms Abbott in Mr Ciobo's office, where Ms Higgins worked at the front desk (T175.36–42).
344 Despite his denials (see, for example, T176.14–37; T350.43–44), as noted above (at [156]), I am satisfied Mr Lehrmann was taken with Ms Higgins from the outset. He told Ms Hamer as much in early March 2019 (T1047.1–19), and agreed he found her attractive when interviewed for the Spotlight programme in June 2023 (T351.1–12).
III2–3 March 2019: Drinks at the Kingston Hotel and Related Events
345 At the Kingo on 2 March, a telling incident occurred, and the event and its reverberations are consistent with: (a) Mr Lehrmann's attraction to Ms Higgins; (b) Mr Lehrmann's immaturity and lack of self-awareness; and (c) Senator Reynolds being given information that may have
