Lawfare Project calls for removal of principal
Arnold Bloch Leibler partner Peter Seidel told The AJN late last month that the judgement has set important legal precedents which will have an impact on Australian law well into the future.
The successful legal case against Brighton Secondary College brought by five former students over antisemitism will have significant international ramifications.
That’s according to Benjamin Ryberg, chief operating officer and one of four attorneys with the Lawfare Project based in New York. It provides free legal services to Jewish communities worldwide to combat various forms of unlawful antisemitism.
Matt Kaplan, his brother Joel, Liam Arnold-Levy, Guy Cohen and Zack Snelling launched legal action against the school and Victoria’s Department of Education over antisemitic bullying they claim to have suffered while students at the school between 2013 and 2020.
The five plaintiffs had alleged negligence, claiming the school and department failed to protect them as Jewish students under federal racial discrimination laws and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Counsel for the students, Adam Butt, took on the case at significant personal financial cost.
Last month, they largely won their civil case, with Justice Debra Mortimer ordering damages totalling around $436,000 and ordering the state to issue an apology.
Ryberg said the ruling by the Federal Court in Melbourne sends a very strong message to academic institutions and also more broadly to anybody who is allowing antisemitism to harm people, that the law prohibits this kind of conduct.
“It’s a message of deterrence – do not let this kind of conduct go on. If you do, there are lawyers who are coming after you to ensure that the rights of the Jewish community are upheld and enforced,” he said.
Ryberg believes that unfortunately, this case is part of a much larger trend of global antisemitism that he sees growing year after year with cases that are highly similar to this one.
For example, the Lawfare Project recently had a settlement in a ground-breaking case involving San Francisco State University, and is involved in a case in Sweden, against the Karolinska University Hospital that was brought on behalf of a Jewish neurosurgeon who suffered antisemitism, and one in the US on behalf of a high school teacher who was targeted with an antisemitic smear campaign.
Ryberg says the Brighton ruling has attracted a lot of attention globally from the legal profession.
“We have received significant feedback from attorneys we work with and professionals in the Jewish community. So yes, from what we’ve seen, there has been extremely positive feedback,” he said.
One aspect of the ruling Ryberg said he can’t understand is why the principal of Brighton Secondary College, Richard Minack, hasn’t been fired or forced to resign, despite being described in Justice Debra Mortimer’s ruling as having failed in his responsibilities and being “unwilling to confront or address antisemitism” at the school.
“I certainly think that should happen. I recall the decision, and the facts that are presented demonstrate that he is utterly unequipped for his present role,” Ryberg said.
The AJN understands that Minack is not currently at the school, although he is listed on its website as still being principal, but he has not been stood down or replaced.
Prominent journalist Greg Sheridan told a Jewish audience in Melbourne last week, “The institutional failure at every level in the school was so egregious, that it was absolutely right to take legal action.”
Arnold Bloch Leibler partner Peter Seidel told The AJN late last month that the judgement has set important legal precedents which will have an impact on Australian law well into the future.
“This obviously has implications for, and well beyond, the Jewish community. There are other minority groups that could also be affected by and benefit from this prThe successful legal case against Brighton Secondary College brought by five former students over antisemitism will have significant international ramifications.
That’s according to Benjamin Ryberg, chief operating officer and one of four attorneys with the Lawfare Project based in New York. It provides free legal services to Jewish communities worldwide to combat various forms of unlawful antisemitism.
Matt Kaplan, his brother Joel, Liam Arnold-Levy, Guy Cohen and Zack Snelling launched legal action against the school and Victoria’s Department of Education over antisemitic bullying they claim to have suffered while students at the school between 2013 and 2020.
The five plaintiffs had alleged negligence, claiming the school and department failed to protect them as Jewish students under federal racial discrimination laws and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Counsel for the students, Adam Butt, took on the case at significant personal financial cost.
Last month, they largely won their civil case, with Justice Debra Mortimer ordering damages totalling around $436,000 and ordering the state to issue an apology.
Ryberg said the ruling by the Federal Court in Melbourne sends a very strong message to academic institutions and also more broadly to anybody who is allowing antisemitism to harm people, that the law prohibits this kind of conduct.
“It’s a message of deterrence – do not let this kind of conduct go on. If you do, there are lawyers who are coming after you to ensure that the rights of the Jewish community are upheld and enforced,” he said.
Ryberg believes that unfortunately, this case is part of a much larger trend of global antisemitism that he sees growing year after year with cases that are highly similar to this one.
For example, the Lawfare Project recently had a settlement in a ground-breaking case involving San Francisco State University, and is involved in a case in Sweden, against the Karolinska University Hospital that was brought on behalf of a Jewish neurosurgeon who suffered antisemitism, and one in the US on behalf of a high school teacher who was targeted with an antisemitic smear campaign.
Ryberg says the Brighton ruling has attracted a lot of attention globally from the legal profession.
“We have received significant feedback from attorneys we work with and professionals in the Jewish community. So yes, from what we’ve seen, there has been extremely positive feedback,” he said.
One aspect of the ruling Ryberg said he can’t understand is why the principal of Brighton Secondary College, Richard Minack, hasn’t been fired or forced to resign, despite being described in Justice Debra Mortimer’s ruling as having failed in his responsibilities and being “unwilling to confront or address antisemitism” at the school.
“I certainly think that should happen. I recall the decision, and the facts that are presented demonstrate that he is utterly unequipped for his present role,” Ryberg said.
The AJN understands that Minack is not currently at the school, although he is listed on its website as still being principal, but he has not been stood down or replaced.
Prominent journalist Greg Sheridan told a Jewish audience in Melbourne last week, “The institutional failure at every level in the school was so egregious, that it was absolutely right to take legal action.”
Arnold Bloch Leibler partner Peter Seidel told The AJN late last month that the judgement has set important legal precedents which will have an impact on Australian law well into the future.
“This obviously has implications for, and well beyond, the Jewish community. There are other minority groups that could also be affected by and benefit from this precedent,” he said.
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