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Thursday, 21 February 2008
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Victoria Laurie reports that the first major class-actions for Aboriginal compensation have been flagged in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
Lawsuits prepared for Stolen
The Australian, Victoria Laurie, February 21, 2008
THE flood of compensation claims feared by those who opposed the national apology to the Stolen Generations has materialised, with a prominent Perth lawyer and the state's peak Aboriginal group joining forces to launch a 1000-strong claim in the West Australian and Northern Territory supreme courts.
It signals an intention to seek massive sums, far bigger than the state Government's $114 million alternative compensation scheme, which has effectively been sidelined by indigenous groups.
The state's Aboriginal Legal Service said yesterday it had handed more than 600 case files, collected since 1995, to a prominent Perth legal firm in a historic legal partnership resembling the long-running James Hardie litigation for mesothelioma victims.
But ALS executive Dennis Eggington said the firm, Lavan Legal, would evaluate a further 400-500 cases of people who had contacted legal aid since last August, when South Australian Bruce Trevorrow, 51, became the only Stolen Generations member to win compensation for "the unlawful and negligent nature" of his childhood removal. He was awarded $775,000 by the South Australian Supreme Court.
A Victorian member of the Stolen Generations, Neville Austin, is preparing to lodge a claim against the state of Victoria. It is understood a class action, involving up to 40 cases, is being prepared to follow the Austin case.
Tasmania was the first state to introduce a Stolen Generations compensation fund, under which 106 people will be granted compensation from a $5 million pool. Stolen Generation members will receive $58,333 each, but there is no prohibition on future civil claims though the courts.
Mr Eggington said the West Australian files contained many worse cases. "We're talking about people who suffered horrific abuse year after year, from coming into care as young as six months old through to teenagers. They have been physically and emotionally damaged for the rest of their lives," he said.
Continue reading at the australian
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