by Cam Lucadou-Wells
I Cook Foods’ $50 million civil claim against the Victorian Government and Greater Dandenong Council is finally set for trial.
The Victorian Supreme Court trial is scheduled for 31 July, with witnesses including ICF owner Ian Cook, former Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton and Greater Dandenong’s former chief executive John Bennie.
Prior to trial, the parties have been ordered by presiding judge Michael McDonald to mediation on 25 July.
The Dandenong South commercial kitchen is sueing the Government and the council for what it argues was its wrongful shutdown by health authorities as part of an investigation into a hospital patient’s death in 2019.
At a Supreme Court directions hearing on 19 July, the Government listed its only lay witness as Professor Sutton.
Its only expert witness was a loss and damages assessor Dawna Wright.
Greater Dandenong Council’s public health coordinator Leanne Johnson, environmental health officer Elizabeth Garlick and Mr Bennie will be called as witnesses for the council.
In the notoriously-named ‘slug gate’ dispute, the council will also call on mollusc expert Stephanie Clark.
Food safety specialist Gary Kennedy, real estate agent Grant Sutherland, digital forensics experts Todd Hutchison and Brendan McCreesh and Ms Wright will also be council witnesses.
I Cook Foods listed 13 lay witnesses, including owner Ian Cook, managers Michael and Ben Cook, as well as experts in slugs, loss and damages, forensic pathology and digital forensics.
A directions hearing was set for 26 July if the matter failed to resolve at mediation.
The matter – which has included allegations of a slug being planted by food inspectors – has been the subject of police and Parliamentary investigations.
No charges have been laid.
