Lawyers Faced Challenges Acting for Abused Sexual Victims of Wa Homes

By Aleisha Orr
WA Today
May 1, 2014

http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/lawyers-faced-challenges-acting-for-abused-sexual-victims-of-wa-homes-20140501-zr2lv.html

Details of legal proceedings undertaken in the 1990s in regard to child sex abuse at institutions run by Christian Brothers in Western Australia were revealed as part of a royal commission.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse in Perth was told that approximately the same amount of money was spent on legal costs as the total amount awarded to a group of about 200 men in the case.

The commission is hearing accounts of sexual abuse against children at the institutions in WA between the 1940s and ‘60s.

Counsel assisting the Commission Gail Furness asked lawyer Hayden Stephens if the large amount of resources on the matter affected the way it was dealt.

Slater & Gordon lawyer Hayden Stephens, involved in the class action against the Christian Brothers, told the hearing that men were “dragged through” three years of litigation for a payout that did not reflect the impact on the victims.

“We had battled for three years… and although that this amount of money does not reflect the suffering that these men had suffered and experienced at these institutions, it was the best that we could achieve through these negotiations.

“To be blunt, the trustees of the Christian Brothers had their knee on our clients’ throat and there was little opportunity for our clients to flex their negotiation muscle or us on behalf of them.”

Lawyer Hayden Stephens has explained at a public hearing the difficulties in seeking payouts to victims.

The hearing was told more than $3 million, possibly $4 million, was spent on legal costs for the case.

As well as hearing that the Christian Brothers ensured a condition of the final payout be that those who took part forfeited any right to further legal action, the commission was told Slater & Gordon also sought a condition that would stop any further legal action by further victims.

Mr Stephens admitted that Slater & Gordon sought to confine the Christian Brothers from making any offers of settlement in any other cases to clients.

“There was a genuine fear that claimants who had not taken action, for example, were limited to CBERS and other like funds that were accessible at the time, would be rewarded more handsomely that the people the subject of this actions,” he said.

He said Slater & Gordon’s “obligation” was to its clients but this condition did not end up being part of the final agreement.

Mr Stephens also described the challenges in seeking payouts to victims.

He described limitations on who could be sued as well the restrictions of West Australian laws, making it difficult to bring forward legal action on matters that went back further than six years.

Slater & Gordon first brought the matter to court in 1993.

The hearing continues.