- Brumby acts on sex abuse compo
- By Dan Oakes
- The Age
- 12/11/2008 Make a Comment
- Contributed by: The Rooster ( 264 articles in 2008 )
TALKS over compensation for former wards of the state who were physically and sexually abused will be fast-tracked after Premier John Brumby admitted their treatment by government lawyers was "insensitive."
The Age reported yesterday that the abuse victims had been told by the Victorian Government Solicitor to provide details such as the exact date on which they were abused, the precise nature of the abuse, details of any complaints they made about the abuse and the precise date when they "suffer(ed) injury, loss and damage." Victoria is the only state other than NSW that has ruled out a compensation fund for abuse victims, and still forces them to fight for compensation case by case.
Angela Sdrinis, a partner at Ryan Carlisle Thomas Solicitors representing 600 former wards, has been angered by what she says is the Government's intransigence over the issue of compensation, culminating in the letter from the Government Solicitor telling her clients, many of whom were abused decades ago, to provide the detailed information.
However, Mr Brumby yesterday admitted that the situation could have been more sensitively managed.
"The person who's written it, I guess they're trying to do their job, but the letter is not sensitively written, and I certainly know from discussions I've had with some of the wards — and I met one in country Victoria the other day, took the time to talk to him — for many of these people, it's very hurtful for them to go through all of these issues again," Mr Brumby told Fairfax Radio.
After The Age made inquiries on Monday, Ms Sdrinis received a letter from the Victorian Government Solicitor asking her to supply a list of cases that could be settled out of court before Christmas. "That is certainly consistent with what we understood the Government's position to be when we first discussed the settlement protocol but between then and now it sort of changed back to the old litigious, technical approach, which is, basically, 'prove your case'," Ms Sdrinis said.
Ms Sdrinis said although she was able to provide much corroborative evidence of abuse, it was impossible to give the detailed proof the Government was demanding.
She said the first case she hoped to settle was that of Ron Hunt, who told The Age on Monday of the horrendous sexual and physical abuse he suffered in the Salvation Army Box Hill Boys Home and at the hands of a couple who had custody of him on weekends.
Mr Hunt said yesterday he was glad the Government had agreed to sit down soon and discuss a settlement, but that he was angry it had taken adverse publicity for it to do so.
"There are so many (former wards) making these complaints and taking up the cases, why do (the Government) sit on their hands?" he said. "They don't understand that it's not all about compensation, it's about the Salvation Army admitting to me what happened, and the State Government admitting that it had a duty of care and didn't do anything about it even after I reported it."
A spokesman for Community Services Minister Lisa Neville said the Government Solicitor's Office regularly consulted the lawyers of former wards of the state in order to settle cases quickly and out of court.
"We are currently putting new services in place to support former wards of the state and provide information to assist people in making a legal claim," he said. "We will work with the VGSO in future to ensure that these claims are handled as quickly and sensitively as possible."
The Age reported yesterday that the abuse victims had been told by the Victorian Government Solicitor to provide details such as the exact date on which they were abused, the precise nature of the abuse, details of any complaints they made about the abuse and the precise date when they "suffer(ed) injury, loss and damage." Victoria is the only state other than NSW that has ruled out a compensation fund for abuse victims, and still forces them to fight for compensation case by case.
Angela Sdrinis, a partner at Ryan Carlisle Thomas Solicitors representing 600 former wards, has been angered by what she says is the Government's intransigence over the issue of compensation, culminating in the letter from the Government Solicitor telling her clients, many of whom were abused decades ago, to provide the detailed information.
However, Mr Brumby yesterday admitted that the situation could have been more sensitively managed.
"The person who's written it, I guess they're trying to do their job, but the letter is not sensitively written, and I certainly know from discussions I've had with some of the wards — and I met one in country Victoria the other day, took the time to talk to him — for many of these people, it's very hurtful for them to go through all of these issues again," Mr Brumby told Fairfax Radio.
After The Age made inquiries on Monday, Ms Sdrinis received a letter from the Victorian Government Solicitor asking her to supply a list of cases that could be settled out of court before Christmas. "That is certainly consistent with what we understood the Government's position to be when we first discussed the settlement protocol but between then and now it sort of changed back to the old litigious, technical approach, which is, basically, 'prove your case'," Ms Sdrinis said.
Ms Sdrinis said although she was able to provide much corroborative evidence of abuse, it was impossible to give the detailed proof the Government was demanding.
She said the first case she hoped to settle was that of Ron Hunt, who told The Age on Monday of the horrendous sexual and physical abuse he suffered in the Salvation Army Box Hill Boys Home and at the hands of a couple who had custody of him on weekends.
Mr Hunt said yesterday he was glad the Government had agreed to sit down soon and discuss a settlement, but that he was angry it had taken adverse publicity for it to do so.
"There are so many (former wards) making these complaints and taking up the cases, why do (the Government) sit on their hands?" he said. "They don't understand that it's not all about compensation, it's about the Salvation Army admitting to me what happened, and the State Government admitting that it had a duty of care and didn't do anything about it even after I reported it."
A spokesman for Community Services Minister Lisa Neville said the Government Solicitor's Office regularly consulted the lawyers of former wards of the state in order to settle cases quickly and out of court.
"We are currently putting new services in place to support former wards of the state and provide information to assist people in making a legal claim," he said. "We will work with the VGSO in future to ensure that these claims are handled as quickly and sensitively as possible."
Source: https://www.theage.com.au/national/brumby-acts-on-sex-abuse-compo-20081111-5mk1.html?page=-1
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