Corruption fears raised over child sexual abuse litigation exemption laws

A lawyer has slammed laws quietly brought in by the government that he says may mean some abusers – and others who seemingly covered up for them – could get away with their crimes.

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A HOBART lawyer has raised the alarm on new legal powers quietly ushered through government that he says could lead to corruption in historic child sexual abuse investigations.

Sebastian Buscemi, who is representing numerous survivors suing the government after they were abused as children by state employees, has warned the new powers meant some abusers – and others who seemingly covered up for them – could potentially get away with their crimes.

He said this could happen if evidence was requested and subsequently destroyed.

Mr Buscemi, who has been a vocal critic of the scope of an upcoming Commission of Inquiry into state government responses to allegations of child sexual abuse, said even if the exemption didn’t lead to corruption, it created an unfair advantage for the state.

But the government said it introduced the exemption to improve timeliness in responding to claims and identifying relevant evidence, and would not provide an unfair advantage or allow perpetrators to go unpunished.

Sexual abuse claims lawyer Sebastian Buscemi in Hobart. Picture: RICHARD JUPE

The exemption to the Personal Information Protection Act 2004 was gazetted in November last year by Justice Minister Elise Archer and allows the Department of Justice to request any information relevant, or potentially relevant, to civil claims against the state of Tasmania if it is in the public interest to do so.

The exemption applies to the departments of Education, Communities, Health, Justice, Police, Fire and Emergency Management, Premier and Cabinet, Primary Industries, Parks, Water and the Environment, State Growth, and Treasury and Finance.

It allows for information in the custody and control of those departments to be disclosed and used by the Department of Justice for the purpose of investigating and responding to civil litigation against the state.

Usually, parties involved in civil litigation can apply for documents through a disclosure request or a subpoena request in court.

“Just to have quietly gone and done that, to be going through people’s personal records, scouring them, a political department not telling people that’s what they’re doing is a very questionable invasion of privacy,” Mr Buscemi said.

“The public interest threshold, to do it secretly, seems not to be met.

“Plus no one knows if anything is being destroyed or not.”

Greens leader Cassy O'Connor.

Greens leader Cassy O’Connor said the exemptions could mean the state government had the “upper hand” in any civil claim cases.

“This is information to which survivors themselves will not have automatic access. That sure doesn’t sound like a level playing field for those who’ve suffered abuse in state care,” she said.

“How is this fair?”

Attorney-General Elise Archer. Picture: Zak Simmonds

Ms Archer said the government had established guidelines so child abuse claims were managed fairly and appropriately.

She said the exemption was introduced due to the increase in claims to provide operational support to the Solicitor-General.

“The purpose of the exemption is also to improve the Government’s timeliness in responding to claims,” she said.

“The exemptions do not place the state in a position of advantage. They are designed so that we can identify the relevant evidence needed to progress the case. People who would perpetrate against children are not protected by this exemption.”

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