The government will also pay the asylum seekers' legal costs, estimated at $20 million. Law firm Slater and Gordon brought the class action on behalf of former detainee and lead plaintiff Majid Kamasaee. ‘This has been a long battle for social justice,’ said principal lawyer Andrew Baker. ‘No amount of money is going to be able to recognise the terrible conditions that these detainees have had to endure.’
No wrong-doing
However, the settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing from the Australian government and the Commonwealth "strongly refutes and denies the claims made in these proceedings". The proceeds will be distributed to asylum seekers based on the length of their detention and their alleged injuries with the average compensation payout to be in more than $35,000 per person.
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