Western Bulldogs could require loan to pay $5.9m compensation payout
As Western Bulldogs prepare to appeal a $5.9m compensation payout, how the club could potentially be forced to foot the bill can be revealed.
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The Western Bulldogs are expected to borrow money to cover a landmark $5.9 million compensation payout to child sex abuse survivor Adam Kneale.
The Bulldogs, who will appeal the verdict, were shocked to be hit with the damages on Thursday, which totalled $5,943,151 in the largest payment awarded to an abuse survivor in Australia.
A Supreme Court jury on Thursday found the club – then known as Footscray – negligent in failing to stop volunteer Graeme Hobbs abusing Kneale between 1984 and 1990.
The club has some hope it can reduce the payout figure.
While the Bulldogs thought it was possible it could lose the Supreme Court trial and face damages, it hadn’t expected to be hit with such a large payment to the victim.
The club chose not to comment on Friday about how it would pay damages, but it’s expected a loan is the most likely course.
The AFL declined to comment on whether it would provide any assistance to any payout.
AFL CEO Andrew Dillon said on Friday he had been in contact with the Bulldogs following the verdict.
“I have spoken to the Western Bulldogs CEO (Ameet Bains) this morning, the Bulldogs said yesterday and the AFL confirms that, we are really sorry for the suffering that Adam Kneale suffered and also acknowledged the pain that he has continued to suffer,” Dillon told 3AW.
“We acknowledge it is a civil legal proceeding which the Bulldogs have said they will appeal.”
The Bulldogs denied they knew about the abuse.
Kneale maintained outside court on Thursday that he believed “wholeheartedly that (the club) knew what happened”.
Kneale’s lawyer Michael Magazanik said he had “no doubt there were other victims at the Western Oval in the early 1980s and I suspect we will see some of them shortly”.
When asked if he thought AFL clubs were aware of historical abuse cases, Dillon said: “things that happened 50 years ago, VFL clubs were very different then, what we want to do now is have our clubs in the AFL and all our community clubs places where people can have a great experience and we are going to continue to work on that.”
A jury decided that the Bulldogs must pay Kneale $3.25 million for pain and suffering, $2.6 million for loss of earnings and $87,573 for medical costs.
The Bulldogs were also ordered to pay Kneale’s legal costs.
Originally published as Western Bulldogs could require loan to pay $5.9m compensation payout
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