A predatory money making practice that seeks to profit off the suffering of victims would be outlawed under proposed new laws proposed by the South Australian Government.
The Government is consulting on draft legislation aimed at banning ‘claim farming’ – the practice where a business receives a kickback for referring an injured client to a law firm.
The practice is reported to occur in a number of personal injury fields, but was most recently highlighted in the wake of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, with a number of victims of child sex abuse reporting being cold-called or receiving unsolicited mail from law firms or other businesses soliciting for potential clients in compensation claims.
The proposed laws, subject to further changes through consultation, would see anyone who engages in claim farming in relation to a personal injury claim being fined up to $50,000 and, in the case of a legal practitioner engaging in the practice, face potential disciplinary action.
“Unfortunately, a number of predatory, exploitative operators have sought to take advantage of vulnerable South Australians by entering the ‘survivor advocacy business’ – seeking to make a quick buck off someone else’s trauma,” said SA Attorney-General, Kyam Maher.
“They often target vulnerable cohorts or communities, and use high-pressure tactics that often equate to harassment or intimidation. They may use misleading or dishonest tactics to discourage victim-survivors from using the freely available legal assistance services which take a trauma-informed approach.
“While most recent reports tend to indicate the practice is not commonly employed in South Australia, there are concerns that increasing regulations in other jurisdictions are seeing these unscrupulous operators look to establish themselves in locations where the practice is still legal, which is why it is imperative we act now.”
The Attorney-General said the proposed legislation will send a clear message to the “ruthless opportunists that we will not tolerate this behaviour and do all we can to protect victims”.
Knowmore Legal Service CEO, Jackie Mead said the proposed law was welcomed and showed that the Government was serious about tackling claim farming.
“This law now needs bi-partisan support to be enacted and then must be actively enforced to bring this predatory practice to an end,” she said.
“South Australians should be proud that their Government is taking a stand against this unscrupulous practice. knowmore Legal Service advocates for survivors of child sexual abuse and has been calling on all Australian jurisdictions to prevent claim farming in a coordinated fashion.
“South Australia is set to follow Queensland in protecting some of Australia’s most vulnerable populations from exploitation,” said Ms Mead.
