Most Manus detainees back $70m compo deal

A $70 million class action settlement between Manus Island detainees and the Australian government and centre operators has to be approved by a Victorian court.

Most of the people who have been detained on Manus Island have backed a $70 million compensation settlement that lawyers say acknowledges the harms they have suffered.

Legal firm Slater and Gordon hopes to get the money paid to current and former detainees before the Manus Island Regional Processing Centre closes at the end of October.

About 70 per cent of the 1923 group members in the class action, who represent the majority of people detained on Manus Island since 2012, have so far registered to be part of the settlement.

Slater and Gordon says about eight per cent of the group has lodged objections to what is believed to be Australia's largest human rights class action settlement.

The firm will tell a judge on Monday that the settlement is the best option for group members in terms of receiving compensation for the harms they have suffered, Slater and Gordon practice group leader Rory Walsh said.

Mr Walsh said the detainees had spent most of their lives waiting for things to get better.

"They've been waiting to find somewhere safe to live and many have now spent much of the last five years waiting in the inhumane conditions of Manus Island for the outcomes of what can be incredibly lengthy refugee status determinations," he told AAP.

"This settlement provides certainty and it provides acknowledgement.

"If it can help these detainees avoid waiting for one minute less in this one aspect of their lives, then this settlement is certainly in their best interests."

The group members must register their claims before September 25 to receive their share of the $70 million, with 1346 detainees currently registered.

More than 160 people have lodged objections but the majority of those have also registered to be part of the settlement if it is ultimately approved by the Victorian Supreme Court.

The parties and independent legal counsel for the objectors will on Monday make submissions to Justice Cameron Macaulay, who will announce his decision at a later date.

Mr Walsh said the government and other defendants agreed to appoint and pay for an independent law firm to act for those group members who want to opt out of the proceeding.

"In our view, this case warranted the appointment of independent legal representation because we do not believe this settlement should be forced on any group member who does not want to participate."

More than 50 group members have asked the court for more time to opt out, which would preserve their legal rights to take separate action.


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Source: AAP



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