Yes, it can happen: following the enactment of sweeping state-level liability reforms, the rate of personal-injury filings in Australia is way down and legal practices are closing or shrinking as business declines. In the state of Victoria, claims over public liability, assault, dog bites, slip-falls and school accidents have dropped sharply and a total of 19 medical negligence claims were filed in the six months to April 29, down from “hundreds of claims two years before”. (Fergus Shiel, Melbourne Age, May 11). In the state of New South Wales, which includes Sydney, “The court’s Chief Judge, Reg Blanch, said statements of claim had fallen from a record 20,784 in 2001 to just under 8000 last year. …There are now only minor delays in bringing on a civil case, with the exception of motor vehicle claims, which require more documentation.” (Michael Pelly, “Lawyers in job void as claims drop”, Sydney Morning Herald, May 8). For more on the excesses which led to a public re-examination of “compensation culture” Down Under, see our Australia page.
Posts Tagged ‘Australia’
Oz: prisoner takes drug overdose, sues
Australia: 28-year-old James Samuel Steward, who “was serving a three-year sentence at Goulburn jail when he overdosed on illegally acquired methadone in May 1998”, is now “suing the state for more than $4 million. … His barrister, Barry Hall, QC, … argued that among the department’s breaches of duty of care was its failure to adequately manage the jail to prevent the entry of illegal drugs.” (Leonie Lamont, “Ex-prisoner sues over drug disablement”, Sydney Morning Herald, May 11). For a case in which a woman sued an American hospital for not preventing the smuggling of the illegal drugs on which she overdosed, see Jun. 27, 2003.
Oz: employer permitted to require attendance by workers
In Australia, an appeals court has “overturned a ruling giving $160,000 compensation to a woman who claimed she was discriminated against by not being allowed to work from home.” Two years ago a tribunal ruled against the publisher of the Hansard parliamentary reports, saying it had unreasonably required subeditor Deborah Schou to attend work in person on days when Parliament was sitting although she had asked to stay home and work via modem. The appeals court, however, found the tribunal’s view of the matter “inconceivable”. (Ian Munro, “$160,000 workplace ruling overturned” , Melbourne Age, May 1).
Oz: a sued gardener’s plight
Even the loser-pays principle wasn’t enough to shield 78-year-old backyard gardener Vincenzo Tavernese of Hornsby, New South Wales, from a far-fetched claim by litigious neighbors claiming injury from the pesticides he used. “The growing popularity of no-win, no-fee law [in Australia] has led to an increase in litigation with little downside for the losing plaintiff. It has been a major driver of the liability crisis.” (Miranda Devine, “Don’t blame me, I’m just the lawyer” (opinion), Sydney Morning Herald, Mar. 4). The article drew responses in the form of letters that appeared in the SMH (one of which asserts that defendant Tavernese had the right to seek a costs security order in the litigation requiring the plaintiffs to show an ability to pay his fees if unsuccessful); a response by Ian Harrison SC defending contingency fees; and a discussion on the Slattsnews blog.
Welcome Australian Broadcasting Corp. listeners
I’ll be a guest on the Radio National Breakfast show, for a discussion of personal responsibility and obesity lawsuits (see various entries in product liability archives). The site’s archive of stories from Australia is here.
Catherine Crier show today
I’m scheduled to be a guest on Court TV’s Catherine Crier Live this afternoon, discussing this website. On Monday morning in Australia (Sunday afternoon in the States) I’m slated to join the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on its Radio National Breakfast show, for a discussion of personal responsibility and obesity lawsuits. And on Monday morning, 8:30 Central, I’ll be a guest on the “Dan, Doc and Dave” show on Peoria, Ill.’s WMBD.
Teacher’s relationship with 15-yo not grounds for firing
Australia is in an uproar after a New South Wales teacher, Jeff Sinclair, won a A$28,000 payout for “psychological injury” for being fired for starting a relationship with a 15-year-old student a third of his age. The Department of Education has been ordered to pay him an additional A$317 a week until he finds “suitable” employment. The government is appealing. (Bruce McDougall, “Teacher’s cash over student love”, news.com.au, Apr. 5; Miranda Devine, “The teacher who played victim”, Sydney Morning Herald, Apr. 8) (via Jacobs). Update Jun. 3: jilted wife wants damage from school authority too.
27-hour billable day…
…draws ire in Oz. (Michael Pelly, “Lawyer’s 27-hour day fuels calls to set legal bills to rights”, Sydney Morning Herald, Feb. 4).
Oz: helmets for cowboys?
Jackaroos, the Australian counterpart of Western cowboys, have traditionally worn the bush hat known as an Akubra, but changes in the law may soon result in the substituting of hard hats instead. After a young jackaroo was thrown from a horse and killed, the New South Wales industrial safety authority pressed charges against the owners of the livestock station where he was working for not providing a safety helmet, and the owners have now pleaded guilty to the charges (Denis Gregory and Jim O’Rourke, “Jackaroo’s death could spell the end for old hats”, The Age (Melbourne), Nov. 30; “Curtains for Akubra after death?”, AAP/Sydney Morning Herald, Feb. 2).
Update: litigious Oz murderer
Australia: “The [Victoria] State Government has rejected triple murderer Paul Denyer’s bid to have a sex change and will seek legal advice on whether he can be declared a vexatious litigant. … This followed an unsuccessful bid for permission to wear make-up in Barwon Prison,” in a legal action that (see Oct. 15) had been assisted by taxpayer-funded Legal Aid. (Andrea Petrie and Chee Chee Leung, “State turns down triple murderer’s bid for sex change”, Melbourne Age, Jan. 9).