In his thought provoking article in the Daily Mail (Thursday 4th April) celebrated author Louis de Bernieres who was a victim of abuse whilst at Public school in his early years poses the questions:
‘ Who can I sue? Who is responsible? What compensation is there for those of us who are approaching the end of our f***** up lives?’
He then states:
‘ There is no restitution for us because the truth is that no one gives a damn what happened to posh boys. Our social morality extends only to underdogs’
Legal Remedies
Whilst I have every sympathy with the terrible abuse Mr de Bernieres suffered at the hands of paedophile teachers whilst at his school, there are individuals to turn to. I can assure him that these men and women do not merely represent ‘underdogs’, and are deserving of our respect, and empathy.
Whilst it is true that society is sometimes prejudicial towards ‘posh boys’, their access to forms of redress is the same as any other victim of abuse. The fact is that when abuse “arose” as a societal scandal, it started with police investigations into Children’s Homes around the early 1990’s but then spread to all other institutions which looked after children.
Association of Child Abuse Lawyers
Many members of ACAL (the Association of Child Abuse Lawyers) have successfully prosecuted cases against public schools as well as State run establishments. In so doing they have not only recovered monetary compensation for these deserving people but also provided them with a platform to show the world what terrible abuse they suffered at the hands of people they should have been able to trust. The sense of ‘closure’ and vindication when these cases successfully conclude is almost palpable and many victims would agree that those outcomes are worth more than the modest financial sums received in compensation.
The abuse suffered by many children within the public school system is now common knowledge. The ‘Tom Brown’s School Days’ notion of 6 of the best making men of those destined to serve the Empire has long gone and most members of the public (and certainly the professionals within this area of law) recognise some schools within that system for the vile abusive institutions they were.
What is our advice?
It is quite understandable that a victim of abuse thinks that no one cares about their plight, and that any attempts to right the wrongs of the past are fruitless. This is a direct result of, and is caused by, the abuse. Lack of trust, whether it be in the system of justice, or other human beings is universally common. If he was consulting us, and I would encourage him to come forward, we would explain to him that, whilst these cases are legally difficult, we would do our best to seek his just deserts. Everyone deserves a fair system of compensation – including posh boys!
Martin Cockx
Martin is a Consultant Solicitor with Scott Moncrieff & Associates.
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