Carroll & O'Dea Lawyers has welcomed the recent announcement that the Federal Government has reversed its opposition to a compensation scheme for the Stolen Generation survivors in the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory.
The Commonwealth announced1 the $378.6 million scheme will run for four years beginning March 2022 and will be open for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who were removed from their families by government, church and/or other welfare groups.
Unlike with other States, Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory survivors have until now been unable to access any type of redress scheme, as the Federal government has previously refused to engage in discussions or offer reparations to redress these survivors.
Carroll & O'Dea's Maithri Panagoda has previously investigated potential alternative dispute resolution options for members of the Northern Territory's Stolen Generation survivors in particular, meeting with members of the NT Stolen Generations Corporation in Darwin, as well as Sydney where he was assisted by Hayley Aldrich.
Carroll & O'Dea assisted the Corporation Pro Bono in drafting letters to the Federal government and other decision-makers, as well as sought advice from Senior Counsel. Ultimately, it was determined that Carroll & O'Dea would be unable to assist the Corporation in a class action.
Both Maithri Panagoda and Hayley Aldrich have dedicated significant aspects of their practice to assisting Stolen Generation survivors, with both redress scheme applications in various States, as well as pursuing common law claims on survivors' behalf. They currently act for survivors against the States of New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia.
To date, Maithri and Hayley have successfully concluded 250 matters on behalf of Stolen Generations' survivors including compensation and apologies from respective State Governments.
They are ready to assist any member of the Stolen Generations and can be contacted at the Carroll & O'Dea Sydney office on (02) 9291 7100.
Footnote
1 https://www.pm.gov.au/media/stolen-generations-redress-scheme
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