Legal Advice Sought by Bourke Street Victims

On January 20 this year, we heard the news that 26-year- old Dimitirus Gargasoulas drove his car through Bourke Street Mall in Melbourne’s CBD and injured 43 people, six of whom would later pass way due to injuries sustained during the attack.

In the nearly six weeks since the attack, not only was Gargasoulas immediately arrested and is now waiting to face court in August, the 37 survivors of his attack are weighing up their legal options.

In the wake of the attack, hundreds of people left flowers for those who were injured and killed during the attack on the steps outside H&M in the mall, with those affected now seeking legal advice, as Shine Lawyers Transport Law Expert Stuart Le Grand told AAP in a statement, "We have been contacted by a number of individuals impacted by the Bourke St tragedy and are exploring the legal avenues available to them at this time, “The circumstances of the tragedy make the avenues for seeking compensation complex. I have not come across a comparable case in my 17 years of working in personal injury law".

While those seeking legal advice have not spoken about their experience on Jan. 20, the weeks since, or what legal advice they have been given, there certainly seems to be many avenues they could go down when moving forward with any legal actions.

In his statement to AAP, Mr Le Grand also commented that the, “people injured could seek compensation through the Traffic Accident Commission. However, there is also the possibility of payouts through worker compensation and victims of crime schemes.”

Mr Le Grand continued by saying, "Compensation would be sought for both physical and psychological injuries and could involve damages for medical treatment, pain and suffering, wage loss and ongoing medical and care expenses”.

In the wake of the Bourke Street tragedy, the government set up a fund to help those affected by it and their families, with donations for the affected families being accepted through the vic.gov.au website.

vic.gov.au/bourkestreet