Greek Community Settles Litigation for Bulleen

Greek Community Settles Litigation for Bulleen

The Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) settled its litigation against the Victorian Government's North-East Link Authority after 5 years of legal action a month before the case was due to be heard.

The GCM received an initial offer for the old Bulleen Drive In site of $11.5m in 2021 with the Authority unwilling to make any more offers during that time. The intransigence of the Authority required the GCM to issue and continue with legal proceedings in the Supreme Court. The Authority vigorously contested the legal proceeding by the GCM for additional funds, with the legal proceedings requiring the GCM to proceed to obtain many expert reports so as to defend their claim.

In turn the Authority filed numerous expert reports including valuation evidence that the earlier offer of $11m was excessive and that it was not compelled to make any further monetary offer for the compulsory acquisition.

This was a highly contested proceedings with Kings Counsels retained by both parties. With only one month to go before the matter was due to be heard in the Supreme Court, enforced mediation saw the GCM succeed in a settlement that provided a payment to the GCM of an additional $6m.

President of the Greek Community of Melbourne Bill Papastergiadis OAM said “This is terrific result for the GCM. Litigation is always an expensive and uncertain process. We had one of the best firms in Australia acting for the Authority and there was significant evidence that challenged the GCM from obtaining any further settlement sum beyond the initial offer of $11m. Nevertheless, the GCM was resolute in its case. We meticulously prepared for the trial and spent countless hours in reviewing and the expert evidence, liaising with our lawyers and in meetings with them on strategy. We believed in the fairness of our claim and it is obtaining a fair and just result for the Community. Our determination has paid off. This is without a doubt one of the most difficult litigation matters the Community has faced in over 125 years. The settlement sum is for the benefit of our organisation. I would like to thank Jorge Menidis for his tireless efforts in helping our lawyers prepare the case for trial. It was a huge load of work in addition to his normal duties. I also want to thank my fellow Board members Marinis Pirpiris, Manuel Tsirmiris and Jim Bossinakis for their assistance at the mediation.”

Bill continued to say “This brings to an end, a hard fought chapter for our organisation. We can now focus on our core programs of education and culture.”