{"id":43,"date":"2019-05-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-05-13T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hub.findingsimple.com\/au\/did-the-legislative-reforms-and-redress-scheme-for-csa-survivors-go-far-enough\/"},"modified":"2022-08-03T16:04:00","modified_gmt":"2022-08-03T05:04:00","slug":"did-the-legislative-reforms-and-redress-scheme-for-csa-survivors-go-far-enough","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insight.thomsonreuters.com.au\/legal\/posts\/did-the-legislative-reforms-and-redress-scheme-for-csa-survivors-go-far-enough","title":{"rendered":"Did the Legislative Reforms and Redress Scheme for CSA Survivors Go Far Enough?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Several legislative reforms have taken place since the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) released its final recommendations in 2017, with Victoria and New South Wales being among the first to implement them.<\/p>\n

However, what exactly does this mean for your clients – who are survivors of institutional CSA – seeking legal redress? There\u2019s been plenty of commentary around whether or not the changes have gone far enough and what it means for the future of governing the not-for-profit sector.<\/p>\n

Sometimes these questions are well worth posing to the experts, so I approached Derek Mortimer, lawyer and legal author<\/a> of Not for Profit Best Practice Manual, <\/em>to gather his commentary on this topical issue for Legal Insight<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Whether your client is looking to access charitable trust funds through the redress scheme or you are a legal adviser in the not for profit sector, Derek\u2019s informed commentary provides a fresh perspective. For the purpose of clarity, Derek refers to Victorian legislation only, however, this commentary may still apply to other states such as New South Wales in which the changes are similar.<\/p>\n

Hurdles survivors previously faced when seeking legal redress<\/h2>\n

In September 2015 the Royal Commission released its final recommendations on redress and civil litigation, dubbed the Redress and Civil Litigation Report<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are the three main areas I have found, according to the Royal Commission that made it hard for survivors to seek legal redress,\u201d said Derek. They include:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. By the time the survivor\u2019s trauma resurfaces, often 20-30 years later, the perpetrator may have passed away.<\/li>\n
  2. In faith-based organisations, the perpetrator may have taken a vow of poverty and may have given up any assets (which could be called upon as compensation for the survivor).<\/li>\n
  3. It was difficult to prove the tortious liability of an institution: whether the institution had a duty of care and if so what that standard of care should be.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Recap on the main legal reforms in Victoria<\/h2>\n

    In response to the problems stated above, the Victorian government tweaked the following legislation, which in turn improved the ability for survivors to take legal action against their perpetrators. Three main changes occurred, meaning:<\/p>\n