Ex-Ten reporter makes big legal move in battle with network

Ex-Ten reporter Tegan George has settled with the network after she sued over trauma she said she suffered covering the horrific 2019-20 bushfires. Ms George filed the lawsuit in the ACT Supreme Court, claiming negligence and a breach of duty of care. She says she felt under threat while covering the fires in southern NSW, including Bermagui where she says she was sent even after it had been evacuated. Ms George said she was left unable to work due to trauma and had claimed damages. However Ms George and Ten this week reached an out-of-court settlement. Ten had denied any claim of negligence. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Meanwhile, Ms George is still locked in a separate lawsuit with Ten in the Federal Court. She has sued under the Fair Work Act, and has claimed the “bullying” culture at the network’s Canberra bureau had reduced Ms George’s “standing and reputation” as a journalist. Ten is defending the lawsuit, in a statement of defence disputing her claims, which the network previously described as “vague and embarrassing” and “liable to be struck out”. That matter will be the subject of a seven-day hearing from February 3 to 11 next year.