Case Summary
The class action arose from the Australian Commonwealth’s use of an automated debt collection system between July 2015 and November 2019. The system, colloquially known as the “Robodebt system”, intended to recover social security payments that had been overpaid. Evidence showed that the Commonwealth unlawfully asserted such debts, totaling at least $1.763 billion against approximately 433,000 Australians. Then, including through private debt collection agencies, the Commonwealth pursued people to repay these wrongly asserted debts, and recovered approximately $751 million from about 381,000 of them. The Federal Court of Australia eventually ruled that the scheme was illegal because it improperly shifted the burden of proof onto welfare recipients to prove they did not owe the alleged debts. The government settled the class action, agreeing to pay $1.2 billion in refunds and compensation to affected individuals.
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Further notes on contested technology
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Additional resources
Justice M. Perry, “iDecide: Digital Pathways to Decision” (21 March 2019) available here: https://www.fedcourt.gov.au/digital-law-library/judges-speeches/justice-perry/perry-j-20190321
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