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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-09-22 Daily Xml
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CHILDREN IN STATE CARE

Ms CHAPMAN (Bragg) (15:49): Has the Attorney-General received the report from the task force investigating the establishment of a redress scheme for victims of sexual abuse in state care; and, if so, when did he receive that report?

The Hon. M.J. ATKINSON (Croydon—Attorney-General, Minister for Justice, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (15:52): From day one of the report of the Mullighan inquiry, I have said that two courses are open to those who claim to be victims of sexual abuse in state care. One of them is to do what any citizen could do, that is, to brief lawyers, bring an action for damages and prove that case on the balance of probabilities; and the Crown, in acting as defendant, will act as a model litigant and do what it can to be fair to the plaintiff.

The second course, which I announced on day one, was for people who alleged they were victims to apply to the Victims of Crime Fund, which is a fund that gets its revenue from a levy on fines and expiation notices and some from consolidated revenue. Individuals who claim to be victims would get every consideration from me should they not succeed in establishing that they were victims beyond reasonable doubt. I would look at an ex gratia payment of up to $50,000 and do so on a burden of proof much less than the normal burden of proof required either in criminal courts or for that matter in civil courts.

A scheme exists already for all victims of crime which those who claim to be victims through the Mullighan report can access, and it was there from day one. There are a couple of lawyers in town who do not want their clients to apply for an ex gratia payment under the victims of crime law because there is not much of an earner in it for the lawyers concerned. They are not very keen on that, and those lawyers try to cover up in the public sphere the existence of ex gratia payments under the Victims of Crime Fund because it is not in their financial interest to disclose that to their clients.

The task force surveyed schemes in other states, reported to me about the schemes in other states and did not, so as far as I can recall, make any recommendations. The solution for people who say they were victims of sexual abuse in state care is the Victims of Crime Fund or an ex gratia payment under the provisions of that law.

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