Know your rights: Lawyer Romeo El Daghl explains what parents need to do when their child is being bullied at school
Bullying is rife and parents should know their legal rights – this senior lawyer says “nothing lights a fire” under schools faster than getting a respected law firm involved.
When a student is bullied at school, the trauma leaves more than one devastated victim. Parents also suffer the heartbreak of that abuse and are left feeling powerless and frustrated to stop their child’s terror.
Bullying is rife in our schools. Nearly half of all Australian children have become targets of abuse, with a distressing seven per cent experiencing suicidal thoughts, according to News Corp’s Great Australian Parent Survey 2025.
The federal government has committed to change. But in the meantime, many helpless families are struggling to know their rights and what action they can take.
The good news is that there are options that, in the appropriate circumstances, can go all the way to court.
But parents have been warned to not act out in anger and unintentionally derail their child’s outcome.
“We’ve seen negotiations break down because school staff take issue with the parents’ conduct and, unfortunately, it’s their child who pays the price,” says Romeo El Daghl, principal at Sydney legal practice Lawpoint.
Mr El Daghl says parents have a right to “expect that their child is safe at school”.
When that is compromised and a child becomes the victim of bullying from a fellow student, the first point of action should be contacting the school, which has a duty of care to “take reasonable steps to prevent students from suffering foreseeable physical and psychological harm”.
Parents should reach out to their school’s leadership, including teachers and principals, Mr El Daghl says.
If that fails to bring a resolution, the next step is an official complaint to the Department of Education or private school governing body.
But if all internal avenues have been exhausted and a “serious harm” has already occurred, parents can turn to the law.
This can include, under the right circumstances, claims for compensation against a school or the department for failing to take the proper action to prevent ongoing bullying and harm.
Mr El Daghl says this path not only results in financial payouts for a family but “equally importantly ... validation for the student and their family”.
“The psychological benefit of being seen, heard and vindicated should not be underestimated,” he says.
He says most bullying claims against schools are settled and therefore confidential, which is “not surprising, particularly with private schools, given the likely reputational damage that can flow from a public judgment”.
“Schools tend to dislike headlines that involve both their name and the phrase ‘breach of duty’,” says Mr El Daghl, who has found that compensation claims are often the “catalyst for effective action by schools”
“We’ve seen time and again that once a lawyer is involved, schools and governing bodies take
matters more seriously and act faster to resolve them.
“Few things light a fire under policy compliance like legal letterhead.”
If it gets all the way to court, Mr El Daghl says many legal firms – including his own – can proceed on a no-win, no-fee basis, limiting a parents’ financial outlay, but the cases could take a few years to be finalised.
“It’s important to note, though, that by the time a case gets to court, the student has already suffered serious harm, which will likely continue well into adulthood. No legal outcome can undo that,” says the experienced lawyer, who has handled many bullying cases, with most settled out of court.
“Only one compensation case proceeded to judgment ... in favour of the student we acted for.
“A parent’s goal should always be to intervene early, stop the harm and avoid litigation wherever possible. That is certainly our goal, too.”
Mr El Daghl warns outraged parents not to derail their child’s outcome with aggressive behaviour or online rants. Never confront a child bully and only approach their parents if “they have a constructive, pre-existing relationship and it is done in a respectful way”.
Social media rants and even venting in parents’ groups on social media can have legal
consequences.
“It is never advisable to name or post a picture of a child and name and shame them or their parents for alleged bullying behaviour. Trial by social media may feel good, but it can often prove costly, especially if the content is defamatory,” says Mr El Daghl.
Parents should also carefully document all complaints made to the school. Put complaints in writing, take digital copies of texts to ensure they have a time stamp and follow up verbal conversations with a detailed email confirming their nature.
“This detail may be important and powerful evidence if a claim is later brought against the school,” Mr El Daghl says.
“The most powerful thing parents can do is stay calm, stay respectful and stay focused on the end goal: creating a safe environment for their child. That mindset ... often leads to the best outcome.”
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