Law firm's payout in Andrews cyclist case
A cyclist left injured after a collision with former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews' car more than a decade ago has agreed to settle a lawsuit against his former law firm.
Ryan Meuleman launched legal action against Slater and Gordon alleging it failed to act in his best interest when negotiating an $80,000 compensation settlement with the Transport Accident Commission.
Mr Meuleman, who was 15 at the time, was seriously injured in January 2013 after colliding with the then-Labor opposition leader's Ford Territory, which was being driven by his wife Catherine at Blairgowrie. Ryan Meuleman spent 11 days in hospital. Supplied. Credit: Supplied The damage caused to Mr Andrews' vehicle. Supplied Credit: Supplied
Mr Andrews and the couple's three children were in the car at the time.
The family have consistently denied any wrongdoing, and no charges were laid following an investigation by Victoria Police.
Mr Meuleman spent 11 days in hospital after the crash.
He has alleged the car struck him, while the Andrews' have repeatedly insisted the cyclist crashed into their car.
On Wednesday, Mr Meuleman's lawyer, Marcus Clarke KC, confirmed the lawsuit had been settled after Ryan received a confidential offer 'too good to refuse'.
Details of the settlement are confidential, however, in a statement, Mr Meuleman said it felt incredible to be 'supported and believed'.
'For years, I never thought I could get here, where people are listening and want to know what really happened,' he said.
'I've got a bit of work to do on myself, and I can now afford some counselling which Mum and Dad reckon will be worth it. But to be honest, I feel good anyway, just knowing people care.' Mr Andrews has maintained he and Catherine did nothing wrong. Jason Edwards/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia
Mr Meuleman has previously suggested he could launch defamation action against the Andrews family to pursue the truth of what happened that day, saying they 'should have owned up to it years ago'.
Mr and Mrs Andrews were not party to Mr Meuleman's case against Slater and Gordon.
How police handled the investigation was later subject to a probe by the independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) which found there were no 'deficiencies or areas of concern' in 2017. Ryan Meuleman's dad, Peter Meuleman, told media he was committed to the 'long road' of investigating the incident. NewsWire / Diego Fedele Credit: News Corp Australia
After Mr Andrews' triple-0 call following the collision was made public late last year, the former Victorian Premier and his wife released a joint statement maintaining 'we did nothing wrong'.
'This matter has been comprehensively investigated over many years by Victoria Police Professional Standards Command and IBAC,' they said.
'While we are sorry that the cyclist was injured in the accident, we did nothing wrong.'
Slater and Gordon has been contacted for comment.
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