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The Herald
January 10, 2002
Letters to the Editor
Sex Abuse Claims
By Tim Long
Henderson
“You may be entitled to
a lump sum of $25,000 and ongoing payments valued in excess of $150,000 and
all you have to do is ‘claim’ that you have been sexually abused, you don’t
need to report it to the police nor do you have to name the abuser and on top
of that there will be no repercussions for you.”
That was the claim of a letter from a Christchurch
legal firm in a leaflet we got in the mail the other day. The firm, by the
way would score 25 per cent, plus GST, from whatever amount you were able to
get.
I have to admit to being appalled by this leaflet because it speaks of a
greedy, selfish and sick society. We can’t afford proper health services for
the sick, work for the unemployed, enough for education, yet a firm which
obviously must be struggling for business and has few ethical standards is
promoting such a move which, if it came off, could cost our country millions
(and make the lawyers wealthy).
I could – and I know others who could – get in on this bandwagon, but I can
accept and overcome the damage of the past without creaming our country’s
finances. I hope others who receive this leaflet will not only be of the same
mind but will also let the firm know.
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