When someone applies for compensation after being a victim of crime, you'd think the system would be on their side. In Western Australia, the law has a different idea. It allows the assessor to reduce a victim's compensation based on their "behaviour, condition, attitude or disposition." In other words: did you bring it on yourself? It's victim-blaming, written into law. It disproportionately harms women, LGBTQIA+ people, trans people and First Nations communities. So we rewrote section 41. It's ready to be introduced into WA Parliament, and any other parliament that wants it. The result? A compensation system that asks one question: What harm have you suffered? In this episode, you'll hear from Kate and Jamie, the authors of the law reform. They're joined by commentator Professor Jenny Morgan from Melbourne Law School, who thinks they should have gone even further. You'll learn: What a crimes compensation scheme is (and why for many victims it's the only acknowledgment they ever get).How section 41 quietly re-runs the old "she provoked me" defence inside a system that's meant to help victims heal.Why this law disproportionately harms women, LGBTQIA+ people, trans people and First Nations communities.What Jenny Morgan learned abolishing the provocation defence in Victoria, and why feminist law reformers can't afford to walk away once a law changes.Guests: Dr Jamie Walvisch, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, University of Western AustraliaProfessor Jenny Morgan, Melbourne Law School, University of MelbourneHosts: Associate Professor Becky Batagol, Faculty of Law, Monash UniversityProfessor Kate Seear, Deakin Law School, Deakin UniversityTake action today: The book is free! The provisions are drafted. Take them to your parliament. Adapt them for another jurisdiction. Or start your own feminist legislation project. You can find Kate, Jamie and Liza’s full proposal to amend crimes compensation law here, in Chapter 9 of our book, ‘Reconsidering the Role of the Victim in Criminal Injuries Compensation’ You can find Jenny’s commentary on Kate, Jamie and Liza’s proposal in Chapter Chapter 9A of our book, ‘Commentary on Reconsidering the Role of the Victim in Criminal Injuries Compensation’Download the full book for free (open access):https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/oa-edit/10.4324/9781003372462/feminist-legislation-project-becky-batagol-heli-askola-jamie-walvisch-kate-seear Resources Mentioned in this Episode Victorian Law Reform Commission, Defences to Homicide Report, Tabled in Parliament on 18 November 2004For a good explainer of how victims of crime schemes work in the context of sexual violence, see Chapter 16 of the Australian Law Reform Commission, Safe, Informed, Supported: Reforming Justice Responses to Sexual Violence (2025, ALRC Report 143)The Australian Feminist Judgments Project is The Australian Feminist Judgments Project : Righting and Re-writing Law edited by Francesca Bartlett, Heather Douglas, Rosemary Hunter and Trish Luker (2014, Hart Publishing).The case involving the death of Julie Ramage was written about by former journalist Karen Kissane in her book, Silent Death: The Killing of Julie Ramage (2006).
