Former Monash University student alleges she was sexually abused by a staff member

A former PhD student is suing Monash University, alleging a staff member sexually abused her — including by having sex with her “without a condom and without her consent”.

A former Monash University student alleges she was sexually abused by a mentor. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

A former Monash University student who alleges she was “sexually abused and harassed” by her controlling male mentor has launched legal action against the university.

The woman – who was a PhD student between 2021 and 2022 – alleges the staff member, who cannot be named for legal reasons, sexually assaulted her repeatedly, including by having sex with her “without a condom and without her consent”.

The writ – filed in the County Court this month – states the woman, now aged in her 30s, is seeking damages from Monash University because it owed her a duty of care to keep her safe.

According to the writ, the woman told the staff member in mid-2021 that she was “not doing well mentally” due to Covid-19 lockdowns and was looking for a mentor.

He agreed to mentor her, but soon after expressed that he was romantically interested in her.

She rejected his advances and told him she had a partner, but she claims he persisted.

One month later, the pair commenced a sexual relationship.

But the woman’s lawyers allege he used his “power and authority” over her to “exert control and commence a sexual relationship with her”.

They say this was due to the fact her PhD was contingent on the staff member’s approval because he sat on a panel that reviewed her progress.

The woman was a PhD student at Monash University. Picture: Lawrence Pinder

On one occasion, in late 2021, while she was asleep in his home, the woman alleges she woke up to him “having sex with her without a condom and without her consent”.

“The plaintiff froze and remained silent throughout the duration of the non-consensual sex,” the writ alleges.

The relationship ended soon after.

She reported him to the university’s ethical conduct branch as her mental health severely deteriorated.

The branch found he was guilty of misconduct, but it had insufficient evidence to determine whether the sexual assault occurred.

Arnold Thomas & Becker lawyer Aki Munir, who is representing the woman, said she had to continue to interact with the staff member in order to complete her PhD studies because he remained employed at the university.

“The psychological impact was so profound that our client suffered significant psychological distress which has affected her life, her studies and her future employment prospects,” she said.

She was forced to leave Australia in late 2022 because she said she felt unsafe, since she was not allowed to continue her studies without having to encounter him.

Her thesis was eventually submitted for review, although she stands to lose her first authorship status on certain publications due to her protracted absence.

The writ claims that Monash University owed the woman a duty to have sexual harassment policies in place which prohibited sexual relationships between PhD supervisors and students.

It also claims it owed her a duty to ensure there was a complaints process in place to enable students to notify the university of inappropriate conduct by staff – and that the complaints process was known to students.

“We are alleging that the university owed our client a duty of care to keep her safe and that the duty of care was breached due to the man’s gross misconduct and failing to have appropriate measures in place to prevent such incidents from occurring,” Ms Munir said.

The woman, who suffers from major depressive disorder, is seeking damages relating to past and future loss of earnings.

A Monash University spokesman said: “We have a responsibility to prevent sexual harm in our communities.

“We support victim-survivors, respond justly and empathetically to all disclosures and reports, and implement evidence-based prevention programming for staff and students.

“We remain committed to building a thriving, inclusive and safe community for our staff and students, now and for the future.”

Monash University encourages any student or staff member who experiences sexual harm or gender-based violence to contact its Safer Community Unit.