Former Warrnambool schoolboy launches fresh legal action over Christian Brothers conduct

Fresh legal action against the Christian Brothers has been launched, with a former Warrnambool schoolboy alleging a headmaster was negligent in failing to report child sex abuse.

A former Warrnambool schoolboy has launched fresh legal action against the Christian Brothers.

A former Warrnambool schoolboy has launched fresh legal action against the Christian Brothers alleging a school headmaster was negligent in failing to report child sex abuse.

The victim, Andrew, not his real name, was sexually abused by John Laidlaw when he was a teacher at a Christian Brothers college in the small country town in 1966.

Laidlaw was last year sentenced in the County Court to seven years and seven months behind bars, with a non-parole period of three years, after pleading guilty in June to historic sex offences against Andrew and five others.

Andrew has come forward alleging the school’s headmaster Brother Williams failed to report sexual abuse to Victoria Police in 1966, despite his mother complaining about the abuse.

The Christian Brothers responded by shifting the sex offender to another school in Melbourne.

The court last year found Laidlaw preyed on his students between 1966 and 1990 but the Christian Brothers did “nothing” but shuffle the pedophile from school to school, including St Kevin’s College in Toorak and Parade College in Bundoora.

In a statement of claim filed to the Supreme Court, the victim alleges the Christian Brothers failed to take investigative and disciplinary action in respect of actual knowledge of sexual abuse at institutions run by the brothers.

He also claims the Christian Brothers failed to conduct due diligence on Laidlaw prior to being employed at the school and failed to train him in the appropriate manner to interact with children.

A former Warrnambool schoolboy alleges a Christian Brothers school headmaster was negligent in failing to report child sex abuse. Picture: Sara Nixon

Andrew said: “Even though I shared the abuse with my parents the very same day, I still had to privately endure the stigma of that abuse for 55 years before I got to share it with those who could help bring the abuser and his organisation to admit their breach of trust.”

“That was a huge weight off my shoulders as well as emotional relief,” he said.

He said it was important for other victims to come forward.

He said people who had been abused needed to come forward so that they could commence the healing and build their own confidence.

“Every year they sit there and think about the abuse, they think they won’t be believed.

“Having the right people beside you is a great feeling but only they can start the process.”

Andrew said the outcome he hoped for was that all abused people would get to a stage where they can look back and feel that they are not alone.

“That what happened was not their fault, that they can look their abuser and the abusers’ organisation in the eye and say ‘got ya’,” he said.

Arnold Thomas & Becker lawyer Nicole Elliott-Struth, who is representing Andrew, said: “Our client suffered abuse at the hands of a man who was in a position of power and whom our client was supposed to be able to trust.”

“Instead of providing care and reasonable discipline, Laidlaw exploited this position of authority for his own predatory gains,” Ms Elliott-Struth said.

“Leadership of the school were well aware of complaints about Laidlaw and ought to have known the risk he posed to vulnerable young children.

“It is not an easy thing to share such a traumatic experience. Our client is hoping that by pursuing legal action he can find some closure and help other survivors summon the courage to come forward.”