Ex-Channel Seven producer makes bombshell claims about $1000 Thai massage for Bruce Lehrmann - Daily Mail

[Adelaide Lang]

By ADELAIDE LANG and MIKLOS BOLZA FOR AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: 06:24 EDT, 8 April 2025 | Updated: 06:25 EDT, 8 April 2025


An ex-producer claims Seven made him into a scapegoat after authorising him to use a company credit card to pay for a pricey massage for Bruce Lehrmann.

Taylor Auerbach is suing his former employer for defamation over claims Seven made disparaging comments about him that led him to be shunned and vilified.

He was allowed to give last-minute evidence in a defamation case launched by Lehrmann against Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson over an interview with Brittany Higgins.

Auerbach said he discussed paying Lehrmann around $200,000 for an exclusive interview on Seven's Spotlight, in which he would publicly respond to Ms Higgins' allegations that he raped her in Parliament House.

Seven footed the bill for a $1000 Thai massage, luxury hotels, expensive dinners, and a golf trip in an attempt to induce Lehrmann to tell all, according to an affidavit from Auerbach.

He claims he was defamed by Seven's statements to media that he had not been authorised to use the company card to pay for the massage and had been forced to repay the charge.

Auerbach said the company 'dissuaded' him from repayment and instead tasked him with withdrawing cash and offering a bonus to the massage provider to reverse the credit card charges.

Contrary to Seven's assertions that he was disciplined after the incident, Auerbach alleges he was offered inducements and told he would become Spotlight's executive producer.

A statement to Media Watch defamed him by implying he had been terminated by Seven as a result of the misuse of the corporate credit card, according to the statement of claim lodged with the Federal Court.

Auerbach was not named in the statements from Seven, but he claims they 'caused a tide of hatred and negativity' towards him.

He was working at Sky News at the time of the statements in March 2024, but blames his termination on his former employer's allegedly defamatory statements.

In response to the explosive court documents released on Tuesday, Seven said it will 'strenuously defend its position in this matter and is considering its options'.

The latest limb of the Lehrmann saga comes as the former political staffer appeals his bruising Federal Court defamation defeat from April.

He was ordered to pay $2 million in legal costs to Ten while the network has agreed to cover $1.15 million of Wilkinson's bill.

Lehrmann continues to deny he sexually assaulted Ms Higgins and pleaded not guilty to sexual assault before his 2022 criminal trial in the ACT was derailed due to juror misconduct.

The charges against him were dropped when prosecutors declined to pursue a retrial out of concern for Ms Higgins' mental health.