Watching the Bruce Lehrmann defamation case in recent days and weeks, it is impossible not to think of the Ben Roberts-Smith saga that came before it and which still rolls on.

It’s not only because Lehrmann’s lawyers also act for the war criminal or because both cases bring to mind that infamous Vietnam War phrase: “we had to destroy the village in order to save it”.

Bruce Lehrmann and Ben Roberts-SmithCredit: Jamie Brown

Lehrmann may yet win his defamation trial against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson and claim vindication, but like Roberts-Smith, risks significant........

© The Sydney Morning Herald