Cattle Industry Loses Appeal on Live Export Ban Compensation

It is from Landline.

The topic is courts.

The date is Friday, 15 May 2026, at 12:07 pm.

Australia's cattle industry lost its appeal over the live export ban.

In short, the industry lost.

The Federal Court dismissed the cattle industry's appeal over losses after the 2011 live export ban.

The NT Cattlemen's Association says the final payout will be hundreds of millions of dollars.

What's next for the industry?

The industry is considering its options.

The Federal Court dismissed the northern cattle industry's appeal on losses after the 2011 live export ban.

The cattle industry wanted to overturn a decision that exports to Indonesia were in decline before the ban.

NT Cattlemen's Association chief executive Romy Carey said the verdict was deeply disappointing.

The judgement may affect damages, but it does not change history.

The Federal Court found the government acted unlawfully when it shut down live cattle exports to Indonesia in 2011.

The final compensation payout will be hundreds of millions of dollars, likely closer to $215 million.

The Federal Court has not released its reasons publicly.

The claimant group will consider its options after the reasons are released.

The case has been dragged out for a long time.

The Commonwealth had the chance to settle the case but did not.

The industry wants the case settled in a timely manner.

Romy Carey says the court decision does not change the fact the government acted unlawfully.

The decision was 15 years in the making.

It has been 15 years since the Gillard government suspended the live cattle trade to Indonesia.

The federal government suspended the trade due to animal cruelty concerns.

The ban was lifted on July 6, 2011, but shipments did not resume until August.

In 2011, pastoralists in Kimberley protested the ban.

The cattle industry launched a class action in 2014, seeking compensation for the ban.

The Brett family was the lead claimant in the class action.

The ban's impact on the industry lasted longer than a month.

The costs of the ban have not been recouped.

Joe Ludwig never faced questions in court.

The claimant group appeared in court in 2017 and 2018.

The Federal Court ruled the live export ban was unlawful in 2020.

Justice Rares found the blanket ban was invalid and capricious.

The attorney-general at the time, Christian Porter, decided not to appeal the ruling.

The Brett family was awarded nearly $3 million in compensation.

Other claimants had to wait for their compensation.

Emily Brett's family was the lead litigant in the class action.

The federal Labor government offered to settle the case for $215 million in 2022.

The industry rejected the offer and labelled it insulting.

The government rejected the industry's counteroffer to settle for $510 million.

The Federal Court ruled live cattle exports to Indonesia were not affected by the ban.

The industry decided to launch an appeal against the decision.

The appeal was rejected by the Federal Court.

Friday, 15 May 2026, at 12:07 pm.

Friday, 15 May 2026, at 12:09 pm.