Former Labor minister acted unreasonably in 2011 Indonesia live cattle ban
A former Labor minister's snap decision to ban live cattle exports to Indonesia in 2011 has been ruled as unreasonable and invalid by the Federal Court.
Then-agriculture minister Joe Ludwig acted recklessly and committed "misfeasance in public office", according to a judgment issued by Justice Steven Rares on Tuesday.
The decision to ban the live export trade was prompted by shocking scenes of Australian cattle being mistreated in Indonesian abattoirs, and the move caused significant damage to relations between Australia and Indonesia.
Then-agriculture minister Joe Ludwig's decision to ban the live export trade was found to be reckless.Credit:Photo: Glenn Hunt
At the time, Australia had exported about 520,000 head of cattle worth about $400 million to Indonesia in 2010 and it took years for the trade to get back on track following the ban.
The Federal Court class action was brought by the Brett Cattle Company, which claimed the ban cost them hundreds of millions of dollars.
In a scathing judgement, the court found the minister made the ban order "shutting his eyes to the risk that it might be invalid and to the damage that it was calculated to cause persons in the position of Brett Cattle".
He was satisfied the minister was recklessly indifferent regarding his ability to make such an order without power of exception, and to the injury it would produce.
"Such a total prohibition was capricious and unreasonable and made the ban order invalid," the judge said.
Justice Rares ordered the minister and the Commonwealth pay the legal costs of the proceedings, noting Brett Cattle was entitled to substantial damages and the parties will have to return to court at a later date in order to determine compensation for the class action members.
Australia exported 676,000 head of cattle in 2019 to Indonesia, the top destination for local live cattle exports. The number of cattle exported is expected to increase following the ratification of the Indonesia-Australia free trade deal earlier this year.
The controversial market is worth around $2 billion annually. More than one million cattle and more than two million sheep are sent overseas each year for slaughter, primary to Indonesia, Vietnam, China and Japan and as breeding stock, chiefly to Qatar, the UAE and Jordan.
- with AAP