Teen cyclist involved in near-fatal crash with Daniel Andrews' family SUV ends legal battle with Slater & Gordon in quiet settlement weeks before trial
The then-teenage cyclist who was gravely injured in a near-fatal collision with Daniel Andrews' family SUV has secured a quiet settlement with law firm Slater & Gordon just weeks before a trial was set to begin.
Ryan Meuleman, then 15years-old, was hospitalised in January 2013 following a harrowing collision with the Andrews' family SUV while he was riding his bike in the Victorian beachside suburb of Blairgowrie.
Mr Andrews, who was the Victorian opposition leader at the time, was in the front passenger seat of the family's Ford Territory, which was being driven by his wife, Catherine.
The couple have both insisted the vehicle came to a 'complete stop' before turning right and being 't-boned' by Ryan's bike.
But a review by a former Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner, Dr Raymond Shuey, commissioned by the Meuleman family, determined the SUV had likely been 'travelling at speed' and had cut the corner before striking the bike, accusing Victoria Police of engaging in 'an overt cover-up to avoid implicating a political figure in a life-threatening crash'.
Labor-aligned law firm Slater & Gordon secured an $80,000 compensation payment from the Transport Accident Commission for Ryan, but his parents maintain neither of them reached out to the law firm to represent their son.
The lawsuit against Slater & Gordon accuses the firm of not conducting a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash, as well as failing to act in Ryan's best interests and breaching its duty of care when negotiating the $80,000 payment.
Ryan's dad, Peter Meuleman, who has vigorously fought for his son throughout the more than a decade-long saga, previously said Ryan "didn't count for anything to them".
"He was treated like he was disposable... He was just a political problem to them," Mr Meuleman said.
Ryan's barrister, Marcus Clarke KC, confirmed to SkyNews.com.au on Wednesday the case with Slater & Gordon had been settled outside of court, just weeks before it was due to be heard before the Supreme Court.
Mr Clarke told the Herald Sun: 'In the end he received an offer too good to refuse'.
Ryan suffered severe injuries in the collision, including a punctured lung, broken ribs and internal bleeding, spending 10 days in hospital.
In the triple-0 audio, Mr Andrews can be heard requesting an ambulance to the corner of Ridley Street and Melbourne Road in Blairgowrie, near a bike path.
"We've turned right into Ridley Street and a kid's come flying through on the bike path and we've hit him," Mr Andrews told the triple-0 operator.
"He is conscious, but he's in a lot of pain."
Despite admitting to the emergency dispatcher 'we've hit him', Mr Andrews then signed a statement at Springvale Police Station on February 5, 2013 that read: "I want to make it clear - the cyclist hit our vehicle".
However, a court battle between the Meuleman family and the couple still looms, the latter being served with concerns notices in January – the first step in a potential defamation claim.
The concern is in relation to comments made by the premier and his wife in a joint statement following the Shuey review.
'This so-called report was commissioned by lawyers on behalf of their clients who are seeking money through the courts by suing their former lawyers. We did nothing wrong,' the couple said in a joint statement.
'This matter has already been comprehensively and independently investigated and closed by Victoria Police and integrity agencies. We will not dignify these appalling conspiracy theories by commenting further at this time.'
Slater & Gordon has been contacted for comment.
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