Seqwater still fighting Supreme Court decision holding them responsible for the 2011 Brisbane River flood

Wivenhoe Dam

The 2011 Brisbane River Class action continues with SunWater finally capitulating and agreeing to pay their 30 percent of the Supreme Court ordered damages to the successful 6800 class action claimants.

This finalises Sunwater's legal obligation, subject to approval by the New South Wales Supreme Court where the class action was initiated and payment of the agreed damages.

The Queensland Government did not appeal the November 2019 judgment and has subsequently agreed to pay its court-ordered 20 percent of damages.

This leaves the third defendant - the recalcitrant Seqwater - to continue with its appeal to the NSW Court of Appeal in May 2021 - still trying to overturn the original 2019 judgment.

Goodna Flood 2011

Seqwater was judged 50 percent liable for the flooding of the Brisbane and Bremer Rivers from 11- 14 January 2011 as a direct result of the operation of its Wivenhoe and Somerset Dams in breach of the water corporation's own operating manuals.

Both SunWater and Seqwater are wholly owned by the Queensland Government.

The persistence of Maurice Blackburn lawyers and their associated litigation funders Omni Bridgeway, formerly IMF Bentham, in this matter is testament to the powerful nature of class actions and the only way battlers across Australia can seek genuine justice.

Full story: ABC News