SYDNEY — Former political staffer Brittany Higgins married in 2024 and chose to retain her original surname. "When I got married I had this opportunity to change my name but I didn't because I'm really proud to be Brittany Higgins. Hopefully, this is just a footnote in my story and it's not the headliner any more," Higgins said.
Higgins appeared at the Sydney film festival for the premiere of the documentary *Silenced*, which focuses on violence against women. She attended the event alongside barrister Jennifer Robinson. *Silenced* was previously screened at the Sundance Film Festival, and is based on Robinson's book *How Many More Women?* The documentary features Amber Heard and was directed by filmmaker Selina Miles. Robinson represented Heard in a defamation lawsuit filed by Johnny Depp.
In 2021, Higgins publicly alleged that a colleague raped her at Parliament House. A federal court later ruled that Bruce Lehrmann had raped Higgins on the balance of probabilities. Higgins described the legal process. "I had heard that the process was ugly and I knew it would be terrible. They'll take every bit of data that you have, your diaries, my counselling records, my doctors' visits, everything. Getting ready for that process every morning, putting on clothes that make you look like someone who is 'rapeable', quote unquote, and yet someone who is also respectable, it's so nerve-racking and so stressful," Higgins said. "There was a point where I almost took my life, because I didn't want to do it any more. The police, luckily, intervened," she said.
Higgins also described being subjected to threats. "We didn't realise the level we were being stalked. We had a line of journos waiting for me to leave the house. There were threats to kill my dog," Higgins said. In 2023, Higgins and her husband, David Sharaz, traveled to France. Regarding her recovery, Higgins stated, "It's going to take a while to fully feel OK again. But we're getting there."
No independent assessment of Brittany Higgins’s claims was available.