Last week week, a landmark decision was handed down supporting a precedent set last year which removed barriers to compensation for survivors of child sexual abuse.
The High Court of Australia has ruled that a permanent stay of proceedings will not be entirely granted in the case of Willmot v. The State of Queensland.
Slater and Gordon Head of Abuse law Stephanie Brown said that this is a fantastic outcome for survivors of child abuse everywhere.
“A permanent stay effectively operates to benefit the Defendant and creates continuing immunity from prosecution.
“It essentially means that a survivor’s claim, their entitlement to damages, and their road to justice are ceased permanently,” Ms Brown said.
Joanne Edith Willmot, an Indigenous woman, filed a claim against the State of Queensland for damages due to psychiatric injury stemming from sexual and physical abuse she endured while in state care from 3 years of old.
Though the alleged abuse occurred decades ago, changes to the Limitation of Actions Act 1974 (Qld) allow claims without time limits.
The State of Queensland applied to stay the proceedings in response to Ms Willmot’s claims of abuse.
The trial judge issued a permanent stay in July 2022, leading Ms Willmot to appeal the decision, which was dismissed in The Court of Appeal in 2023.
The matter is being run by Littles Lawyers.
“A permanent stay ignores the fact that adult plaintiffs were once vulnerable young children, who believed the threats of their abusers and who never dared to report the abuse.
“Since the removal of limitation periods following The Royal Commission’s inquiry into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, it is known and accepted that when survivors finally have the courage to come forward and share their story these matters will be years if not decades old.
“But after these changes we began to see Defendants callously seek to end such claims by filing for a permanent stay of proceedings.
“Many abuse claims are historical, we have to accept that it can take decades for a victim of child abuse to come forth with their story, and with that we must not be surprised if perpetrators of abuse are now deceased,” Ms Brown said.
“Ms Willmot has bravely taken her fight all the way to The High Court and reminded everyone of the very real psychological affects abuse has on survivors,” Ms Brown said.
“For too long Indigenous Australians who have suffered in state care have had their trauma ignored. We see this as a win for all of our First Nation clients, all who unfortunately have similar stories to Ms Willmot.
“This decision also supports a precedent set last year in the matter of GLJ vs The Diocese of Lismore, where a permanent stay was not upheld.
“On behalf of our clients we are pleased with this outcome, and feel it sets the precedent for other survivors to know they have access to the justice they deserve and will be heard if they come forward.
“We want to see Courts continue with this same approach and allow each case to proceed to trial on its merits, and not to allow such claims to be encumbered by interlocutory disputes.
“We hope that this decision sees the law change in a positive way for survivors to put an end to permanent stays on matters of abuse,” Ms Brown said
