The Federal Court has ordered Bruce Lehrmann to pay Network Ten's costs in defending his failed defamation case over an interview with Brittany Higgins on The Project.

Justice Michael Lee has ordered the costs be paid "on an indemnity basis" for most of the case, except for the cost of Ten's failed qualified privilege defence.

An order for indemnity costs involves an extra payment on top of the reasonable costs of running a case.

The court has not heard what the total costs come to, and Justice Lee has ordered that issue be handed to a referee to assess.

It wasn't a total loss for Mr Lehrmann, who had argued he should not have to pay for the qualified privilege defence, which failed.

Today Justice Lee said he would have to pay the basic costs of that but would be spared the higher indemnity costs.

Indemnity costs are levied at a higher rate after a losing party has refused settlement.

Last month, the court found Mr Lehrmann did, on the balance of probabilities, rape Brittany Higgins at Parliament House in 2019, though there remain no criminal findings against him after his aborted trial in the ACT Supreme Court.

Mr Lehrmann denied any sexual activity took place while the pair were in the office of Senator Linda Reynolds.

Justice Lee accepted Network Ten's submissions that Mr Lehrmann brought the defamation case on a "knowingly false premise".

He said he did not believe Mr Lehrmann's account of why he went to Parliament House that night with Ms Higgins.

"Mr Lehrmann had sexual intercourse with Ms Higgins, and yet ran a primary case … that early on 23 March 2019, he was preoccupied with noting up details as to French submarine contracts," Justice Lee said.

Justice Lee also took another swipe at comments made by Network Ten after the defamation case judgment was handed down.

He said although the network was legally justified in their reporting on the allegation of rape, that did not apply to the whole program.

"The major theme of the broadcast was the publication of what [Ms Higgins's partner David] Sharaz — the promoter of The Project and the regular conduit between Ms Higgins and [Network Ten producer Angus] Llewellyn — had 'pitched' to Ms Wilkinson," Justice Lee said.

"The credulous approach taken as to the allegations pitched by Mr Sharaz – and as to Ms Higgins's credit generally – lacked both rigour and objectivity.