'Incentive to stop,' hundreds of Canberra child sex abuse settlement cases to reopen

The ACT Legislative Assembly on Tuesday became the last state or territory jurisdiction to act on advice from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse to liberate victims from largely one-sided, "unjust" civil settlements with institutions.

The victims, including the scores who survived two notorious paedophiles Brother Kostka and Paul Lyons at two Canberra schools, are now being offered legal advice that is now possible to apply to court to set aside their deeds of release and seek to reopen their claims.

Lawyer Jason Parkinson has told The Canberra Times the largely damaged men now have a chance to rewrite their lives.

"After all of the evidence of the royal commission, where Australia was quite frankly shocked at the sheer numbers of children being abused in Australia, in church-run schools and churches," he said.

"These men compromised their claims and entered into deeds, supposedly finalising their matter 'forever in a day', simply because the alternative was if they went to court, the statute of limitations meant their claim could have been struck out - and costs ordered against them - for being 'out of time'."

"Now, as far as I know, that is, Australia is the first country in the history of the British legal system to bring in a law that will set aside a deed where there was such unfairness. It really is a world first, and these men are going to get the benefit of that changed law."

Most of the ACT cases relate to two schools, Marist and Daramalan colleges, and two serial paedophiles operating in them. Mr Parkinson, however said there were other schools and abusers. The main settlements were with the Catholic orders, the Marist Brothers and Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.

John Chute, also known as Brother Kostka, was jailed in 2008 for molesting six boys at Marist College in the 1980s. In 2019, the ACT Supreme Court judge David Mossop accepted Chute committed further horrendous crimes, but he could not be convicted due to dementia and Parkinson's Disease.

Lyons took his own life in 2000 after one of his victims went to the police. He taught at Marist between 1976 and 1987, then at Daramalan from 1988 to 2000.

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Mr Parkinson, who has been representing abuse victims since 2000, said the victim-survivors have had challenging lives.

That's if they survived.

"Sadly there's been adult suicides, and certainly what was striking, there were some past suicides of children that probably relate to child abuse," Mr Parkinson said. "So there is always a pall of suspicion and death whilst these paedophiles were molesting children at both schools."

"We've had a number of the victims who were so psychologically damaged that they couldn't act in their own best interest in court and we had to have a public trustee or a parent take over the running of their case. I've had some of the victims ... have to go to secure psychiatric facilities.

"They were just molested and their lives destroyed by one of any number of paedophiles at both schools, Kostka and Lyons weren't the only ones."

But the victims, when they came forward in 2007-2008, had been out of time by at least 10 years.

Mr Parkinson said the institutions knew it and tried to keep them away from courts and toward the Catholic Church's controversial system to deal with abuse complaints, known as "Towards Healing".

The process, which started in 1996, had a maximum payment of $50,000, but the average was around $5000 to $10,000.

By issuing proceedings and going public in great numbers the Canberra victims did better when they settled, but it was not a full court hearing with the prospect of full damages.

It all changed with the post-royal commission lifting of the statute of limitations on such cases.

"We now know what these cases are valued at," Mr Parkinson said.

"These men probably settled their claim back then for about a third of what their claims are valued at today with what's called general damages, which is 'pain and suffering'. They did not get any award for ongoing medical treatment and economic loss."

The lawyer believes there are many more victims out in the community suffering in silence, some of whom may now come forward.

He has praised victim-survivors for their bravery.

"Because these men came forward and stood up to be counted, they have done so much to protect the children of today and tomorrow, because now the churches know that a child's life is incredibly valuable," Mr Parkinson said. "Which means if they've got to pay full value, then they will stop abusing children."

"Whereas when they just had their 'Towards Healing' scheme and it only cost them five or 10 grand to molest a child, well there was no incentive to stop."

Both Marist Brothers and Missionaries of the Sacred Heart were contacted for comment.

"The Marist Brothers voluntarily revisited a number of past settlements in Canberra following the conclusion of the Royal Commission. We are committed to continuing to respond to any person coming forward," a Marist Brothers Australia spokesperson said.