[The Sabbaticus]

Student cleared of race abuse must still pay $41,000


Andrew Bolt, Herald Sun
February 4, 2017 9:35am

Even when university students are found completely innocent after being sued for $250,000 under the Racial Discrimination Act, one still now has to pay $41,000 to lawyers for the solicitor representing the Aboriginal woman who sued him.

Proof that even when you win under this wicked law you lose. So why haven't the Liberals tried to repeal it?

A university student whose single Facebook post was vindicated by a Federal Circuit Court judge has now been billed more than $41,000 in costs to fund lawyers for Susan Moriarty, the solicitor for Cindy Prior.

Alex Wood, a junior graduate engineer in Brisbane, told The Weekend Australian yesterday the $41,336 legal bill was an unjust outcome, four years after Ms Prior told him to leave an indigenous-only computer lab at the Queensland University of Technology because he was white. The ejection of Mr Wood by Ms Prior on May 28, 2013, led to him posting on Facebook soon after: “Just got kicked out of the unsigned indigenous computer room. QUT stopping segregation with segregation?”

Ms Prior, who went on stress leave from her job at QUT almost immediately, cited the Facebook post as well as follow-up comments by other university students in a complaint under section 18 of the Racial Discrimination Act to the Human Rights Commission in May 2014.

She cited the Facebook posts in a subsequent $250,000 damages claim against Mr Wood and six of the students.

Mr Wood said he wanted to put the case behind him after Federal Circuit Court judge Michael ­Jarrett ruled three months ago that his Facebook post was “rallying against discrimination” and not a breach of section 18C.

The court heard that Ms Prior’s racial vilification allegations were “of the highest level of seriousness”, and involved an unreasonable pursuit.

Mr Wood’s barrister Anthony Collins has said: “They could never have succeeded. There was an absence of scrutiny by Ms ­Moriarty.”

However, Judge Jarrett, who ruled that the action was not ­entirely without merit, rejected a bid by Mr Wood’s lawyers to have his costs borne by Ms Moriarty personally. The $41,336 legal bill is for the solicitors and a senior barrister for Ms Moriarty to try to stave off the bid to force her to be personally ­liable for costs.

Mr Wood said .... “I don’t have the money to meet these costs. I don’t think [Prior] has the money to pay more than $200,000 for the three students’ costs. There are no winners in this case.”...

Mr Wood’s solicitor Damien Bourke said he was “extremely disappointed to find that Alex hasn’t recovered any of his costs in defending himself and is now being pursued for costs”.

“Alex’s costs in defending his comment and now responding to an appeal application are substantial — in excess of $100,000,’’ Mr Bourke said.

Three of the seven students paid after being told by Ms Moriarty, on behalf of Ms Prior, that $5000 payments could release them from the $250,000 claim.

This case is a scandal in every which way.

Students being sued by a staff member at their own university?

Students being sued for expressing an opinion?

Students being sued for racism when they were actually opposing racism?

Students not told for many months by the Human Rights Commission that it was investigating them?

The Human Rights Commission not junking this ludicrous case?

A law that encourages such baseless and oppressive legal action?

A law against free speech?

A law that makes it too expensive in money and lost reputation for the innocent to defend themselves?

A university staffer using this law to terrify three students into handing over $5000 each?

A Government too gutless to indemnify the students?

A Government too gutless to say what's clear: that this law is wicked and must be scrapped?

A Government too gutless to admit the Human Rights Commission is a menace to our human rights and must be scrapped?

Labor too gutless and blinded by ideology to even acknowledge the injustice done to seven students?

A media that is largely ignoring the case for fear of having to defend free speech?

A media that is largely ignoring this case for fear of having to admit that this law that it backed is evil and is being abused?

This case perfectly illustrates why politics is broken and so many voters have had a gutful.

(Thanks to many readers.)

Herald Sun

If anyone had any doubts about Australia being a multicultural cesspool that at one point failed to address widespread sexual abuse of children amongst 'Aboriginal' communities due to concerns over being perceived racist ...

[One Degree]

Thanks for a beautiful example of how insane the Liberal agenda has become. The lawyers love it though. They always win no matter what.

[Decky]

That is capitalism for you. You only get as much justice as you can pay for. If you can't afford huge lawyers fees you have to accept getting shat upon with no way to do much about it. Even if you win the case it will only end with bailiffs knocking down your door and stealing your shit to pay the fees.

[ThirdTerm]

However, Judge Jarrett, who ruled that the action was not ­entirely without merit, rejected a bid by Mr Wood’s lawyers to have his costs borne by Ms Moriarty personally. The $41,336 legal bill is for the solicitors and a senior barrister for Ms Moriarty to try to stave off the bid to force her to be personally ­liable for costs.

Australia's race law is toothless and there is hardly anyone convicted with a hate crime. This college student is cleared of any wrongdoing as is always the case in Australia but he is liable to pay his own solicitors by himself. It's too convenient to make another person pay his legal fees. Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act is considered redundant in Australia and Liberals (conservatives) are trying to get rid of it altogether, who see racial abuse as their natural right rather than a crime.

The federal court has thrown out a lawsuit brought under the Racial Discrimination Act against three Queensland University of Technology students under section 18C.

The federal circuit court judge Michael Jarrett has ruled that the lawsuit by Indigenous staff member Cindy Prior should not proceed against Alex Wood, Calum Thwaites and Jackson Powell.

Prior was suing for $250,000 in damages but the three students had applied not to have the case proceed.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-n ... thrown-out