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| Wivenhoe Dam |
By Michael Madigan
THOUSANDS of Queensland flood victims risk losing a large slice of any compensation payouts even if a planned multibillion-dollar class action never reaches a courtroom.
Lawyers trying to extract taxpayer compensation for Brisbane flood victims stand to gain up to 30 per cent even if the Newman Government bows to pressures and makes ex gratia payments.
Law firm Maurice Blackburn's backers IMF Australia stand to pocket tens of millions of dollars if they succeed, with the government payout likely to be in the hundreds of millions.
Up to 5000 victims are believed to have signed up to a class action despite a US Army report released last week that backed the actions of the Wivenhoe dam engineers.
The $15 million flood inquiry earlier this year found the engineers had breached the manual.
Pressure is expected to build on the Newman Government to make some ex gratia payments to avoid a public backlash in the lead-up to the next election.
Flood victim David Stark, who estimates the flood cost him close to $250,000 and who has repeatedly linked the management of Wivenhoe Dam with the floods, said litigants had to take care.
"I am not necessarily anti-Maurice Blackburn, but I would urge all flood victims to look at all options before signing anything," Mr Stark said.
He said it was unlikely the Government would settle victims' claims for compensation without a courtroom showdown, but it was not an impossible scenario.
Maurice Blackburn principal Damian Scattini said there was only one pressure point applied to the Newman Government to pay flood victims compensation and that was the class action.
"You can join the class action or you can get 100 per cent of nothing," he said.
"Because that is what the Government has promised you - nothing."
Mr Scattini said it was standard procedure for a company funding a class action to be recompensed.
He said backers would not expect any slice of the payout if the Government announced a compensation payout clearly unrelated with the pressure applied by the class action.
IMF Australia has made it clear in section 13 of its agreement summary if claims are settled "or there is an ex gratia payment received by you" IMF would be repaid a fee of between 26 and 30 per cent of the gross amount.
If the class action reaches resolution on or before before June 30, 2013, the fee is 26 per cent off the top of the first $1 million. If the resolution is reached after June 2013, the fee is 30 per cent off the top.
The Government has refused to comment.
A spokesman said that Premier Campbell Newman had made the Government's position clear when he said: "People who have a complaint, they will have to look at these things and make a judgment, it is a free country".
But Mr Newman has dodged questions on whether his Government would act as a model litigant as pledged by former premier Anna Bligh.
A model litigant is required to fairly assess the claims and mediate the claims wherever possible.
Ipswich Councillor Paul Tully, whose own home was flooded, said the prime impetus for the Government to settle claims came from the class action.
www.CourierMail.com.au
3.10.12
