Commentary by Goodna flood victim Ipswich Councillor Paul Tully:
PaulGTully@gmail.com
Flood victims across southeast Queensland floods face an anxious wait for the final report of the Queensland Floods Commission.
Originally scheduled to be handed down on 24 February 2012, the final report is now due on Friday 16 March 2012, just 8 days before the Queensland state election announced by Premier Anna Bligh for Saturday 24 March 2012.
Additional hearings were scheduled by the Floods Commission after sensational revelations by The Australian journalist Hedley Thomas who exposed crucial evidence critical of the Wivenhoe Dam operating engineers which had been overlooked by officers of the Floods Commission.
The possibility of a major class action against the Wivenhoe Dam operator Seqwater and the state government depends largely on the findings of the Commissioner Supreme Court Justice Cate Holmes.
If she finds there have been significant breaches of the dam operating manual and/or negligence in the dam's operation, it will pave the way for high-profile class action legal firms such as Maurice Blackburn and Slater & Gordon to swing into action.
The lack of adverse findings would not be a complete bar to bringing class action proceedings given that the legal onus of proof in a negligence claim against the dam operator and/or the state government would be "on the balance of probabilities".
There is a long way to go before the any legal wrangles are instituted and finalised but the crucial Final Report of the Floods Commission is likely to reverberate in Queensland's political and legal circles for years.
PaulGTully@gmail.com
