Rush awarded $2m for lost earnings

ACTOR Geoffrey Rush has been awarded $2 million for lost earnings in his defamation case with The Daily Telegraph, a fraction of the $25 million he originally sought.

Justice Michael Wigney found in favour of Mr Rush (right) and awarded him $850,000 in damages for loss of reputation in April, making his total payout almost $2.9 million.

The Daily Telegraph is appealing against the decision. Part of the newspaper’s appeal is the damages are excessive.

Actor Rebel Wilson was awarded $4.5 million in a lawsuit against Woman’s Day but it was reduced on appeal to $600,000.

Mr Rush sued the newspaper over a series of articles in late 2017 which said he had been the subject of a complaint of inappropriate conduct by an unnamed actress during a Sydney Theatre Company production of King Lear. The actress was later identified as Eryn Jean Norvill who played Cordelia to Rush’s Lear in the production that ran from November 2015 to January 2016.

Tom Blackburn, SC, said part of the newspaper’s appeal would be based on Justice Wigney’s finding that Ms Norvill was an “unreliable witness”.