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Brittany Higgins testified in the defamation trial of Bruce Lehrmann, denying that she intentionally tried to hinder his retrial for alleged rape. She was cross-examined by Lehrmann's lawyers, who questioned her intoxication on the night of the alleged rape and her decision to proceed with the criminal trial despite being advised not to. Higgins received a $1.9 million confidential financial settlement from the Commonwealth and testified that she did not appear to be staggering or swerving while walking barefoot towards an elevator after the alleged rape. She also discussed text messages with a close friend, Ben Dillaway, in which she disclosed the alleged rape indirectly. Higgins rejected the suggestion that these messages indicated she was unsure about what had happened and explained that many of her conversations during that period would have helped her. Mr. Whybrow questioned Higgins about a specific message on Dillaway's phone that suggested she had already made up her mind not to pursue the criminal complaint, but Higgins denied deleting the message and explained that she was beginning to disclose her decision. Justice Michael Lee expressed his preference for wrapping up Higgins' cross-examination as soon as possible, as it would be shorter if she avoided making lengthy responses to Mr. Whybrow's questions.