Ken Cush & Associates

20/06/2025

Today, all of us at Ken Cush & Associates watched on with immense pride as our colleague and friend Miriana was admitted to practice as a solicitor. Since joining the firm in 2022 as a Legal Assistant, Miriana has been a generous, skilled and respected presence to staff and clients alike. Fittingly, Miriana's admission was moved by our Principal Solicitor, Sam.

Congratulations, Miriana! 👏🎉

26/02/2025

The Supreme Court of Victoria has rejected an application for permanent stay against our client, HM (a pseudonym), on the basis of prejudice arising from the passage of time.

The Court found that an organisation, "acting prudently and responsibly", would have made the necessary enquiries to respond to a claim of child sexual abuse. In this case, even if the claims had been brought earlier, the Court noted that "the best evidence available is that those enquiries would not have been made".

Regardless, in enacting legislative reform following the Royal Commission, it can be inferred that Parliament "did so knowing that many, many institutions would have conducted themselves in a similar way when faced with claims or complaints".

Read the full judgment on our website here: https://www.kencush.com.au/verdicts

18/02/2025

Principal Solicitor Sam Tierney appeared on the ABC's Law Report podcast to discuss the recent High Court matter concerning judicial immunity.

Listen to the full interview here: https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/lawreport/high-court-judicial-immunity/104891378?utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared

13/02/2025

Yesterday, the High Court overturned last year's Federal Court decision which held Judge Salvatore Vasta liable for the false imprisonment of our client, Mr Stradford.

The High Court found that "despite the many and egregious errors in Judge Vasta's treatment of Mr Stradford, at all times Judge Vasta was acting in the purported exercise of the judicial function of a judge of the Federal Circuit Court" and that his actions were therefore protected by judicial immunity.

Mr Stradford says that "while respecting the High Court has decided to change the common law of Australia to protect all Judges and officers working at their direction, I feel it is a dark day for people like me who suffer as a result of the many and egregious acts of a Judge, who then enjoys absolute immunity from any consequences. I would like to thank my legal team for their ongoing work in the case and as per the High Court’s direction as to how wrongful imprisonment should be remedied, we now will look to the Commonwealth Attorney-General to act swiftly to rectify this injustice."

The full judgment is available on our website: https://www.kencush.com.au/verdicts

11/02/2025

Today, the Federal Court of Australia dismissed an application made by the ACT Government for summary judgment against our class action proceedings brought on behalf of ACT public housing tenants.

This decision paves the way for the class action, which claims compensation from the ACT Government for its conduct in attempting to forcibly relocate tenants, to commence.

Read more about the proceedings, including the judgment, here: https://www.kencush.com.au/act-public-housing-class-action.

18/11/2024

We are working on a set of proposed statutory amendments, to be known as DP’s law, to ensure that survivors of abuses from clergy members receive adequate legal protections and access to justice.

Our Principal Solicitor, Sangeeta Sharmin, recently appeared on ABC news to announce this call for reform.

18/11/2024

We are working on a set of proposed statutory amendments, to be known as DP’s law, to ensure that survivors of abuses from clergy members receive adequate legal protections and access to justice. These changes will be urgently communicated to the Attorney General of each State and Territory.

Our Principal Solicitor, Sangeeta Sharmin, recently appeared on ABC news to announce this call for reform.

13/11/2024

Today, the High Court of Australia handed down its judgment allowing the appeal in the matter of Bird v DP (a pseudonym). In so doing, the High Court declined to extend the concept of vicarious liability beyond the bounds of a strict employment relationship.

Our client, DP, would like to thank the High Court and all judges in his matter for their careful consideration of his case. He is deeply disappointed that the compensation for the sexual abuse of Brother Coffey has been taken away as a result of the law in Australia being unable to find the Bishop vicariously liable. He hopes the Australian Parliament will swiftly fix the law to help others in his position. It has been a hard journey and he thanks his legal team for their strong advocacy.

The full judgment can be found on our website here: https://www.kencush.com.au/verdicts

29/08/2024

The findings in the Inquest into th of a man in ACT custody were recently handed down, with Coroner Ken Archer identifying aspects of Luke's care and supervision whilst he was on remand at the Alexander Maconochie Centre that "contributed to the cause of his death".

Ken Cush & Associates, who represented Luke's family in the proceedings, join them in calling for the recommendations to be implemented urgently.

The full findings and recommendations can be found on our website here: https://www.kencush.com.au/verdicts

A coroner examining the su***de of a detainee at Canberra's jail has found the ACT had accommodated prisoners in cells they knew to be unsafe.

23/02/2024

A huge congratulations to our newest lawyer, Nicola Ilyk! Nicola was admitted this morning by our own Sam Tierney in the ACT Supreme Court. We are so proud of you Nicola! 🎓📜🎉

14/02/2024

Sam Tierney, our Principal Solicitor, appeared on The Project on Sunday night alongside our client Ali Yasmin. We recently settled a $27.5 million class action on behalf of Mr Yasmin and many others who were wrongfully detained.

You can watch the full segment here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EA-C-pVfCE