Legal action against Coles, need advice

J

jerrybee

I have no experience with this sort of thing so I was hoping someone here might be able to assist.

My girlfriend went to Coles a few weeks ago, and was promptly stopped on her way out by a plain clothes security guard. He suspected her of shop lifting. English was not her first language, and apparently the ID he pulled out did not have a photo on it. Since this happened 3 days after the Sydney siege (I work literally around the block from where it happened), she was understandably anxious and ran to the Coles helpdesk to seek help. He chased after her. You can imagine she was terrified at this point.

Anyway after a thorough search of her bag and checking of her receipt, he was satisfied she hadn't stolen anything.

At first I was going to just make a complaint, but now she's scared to go back. Because of this I've decided to take legal action as I am furious.

What type of lawyer should I seek out and on what terms (pro bono?). I really have no idea where to even begin as I've never had to do something like this before.
 
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Bag searches are supposed to be visual only. He cant go through her stuff inside.

You could take legal actioh but to what aim? It will cost you 50-100k to take it anywhere near court.

Your best bet is to complain to Coles who blame and give a limp wristed memo to their outsourced security mob, and send you some vouchers for your trouble. Corporate world at its finest
 
What is the legal issue you want to discuss? Was she assaulted or detained against her will?

And why would a lawyer do this pro bono?
 
Terry_w said:
What is the legal issue you want to discuss? Was she assaulted or detained against her will?
Click to expand...

No that he chased her, terrifying the hell out of her. She was pretty distraught when she got back.

Are you guys saying she has no legal grounds? If that's the case I'm a pretty level headed guy and am happy to back off. I'm just so upset at both their actions and how dismissive the shift manager was when I went to speak to him after.
 
Terry_w said:
And why would a lawyer do this pro bono?
Click to expand...

Honestly I don't even know what pro bono is. I have no experience in this sort of thing. She came home about 10 mins ago on the way back from Coles and said just how scared she is to go there now, that's what prompted me to write this post. Maybe I'm just too tired / upset, need to go away and calm down:(
 
Check out List G Barristers in Melbourne
They do pro-bono work if it is in the public interest, involves the protection of human rights, or is of particular legal merit but without funding.

Here is their website:

http://www.listgbarristers.com.au/pro-bono/

Pro Bono

List G Barristers' members are among the most active in and committed to pro bono advocacy.

List G Barristers has a long and proud tradition of commitment to access to justice and equality before the law. The achievements of our members are well known to the legal community and some of the country's ground breaking cases in the area of social justice have originated with our list. Whether through the Victorian Bar's pro bono scheme or otherwise, our members continue to offer their valuable time and expertise free of charge.

Over the last 10 years, the Victorian Bar itself has donated millions of dollars worth of legal services via its pro bono programmes and List G Barristers has been a large part of that achievement.

If your matter is of public interest, involves the protection of human rights, or is of particular legal merit but without funding, our Clerking team can assist in directing you to the appropriate scheme.
 
jerrybee said:
Are you guys saying she has no legal grounds?
Click to expand...

I am not saying that as I have no idea what happened. Sounds like not much happened but she was asked to show a receipt - which is coles contractual right with customers entering the premises -by entering the shop you would be agreeing to have your bags inspected on the way out. But a security guard would have no right to touch a person or touch a person's hand bag without their consent.
 
Thanks Beanie Girl. I see, so "pro bono" is not the term I was looking for. I was trying to describe the "no cash up front, only pay if you win" thing. Not sure what the official word for it is. My friend was in a car accident and got 20k, and they only took 2k out for fees. I was shocked - I assumed "no win no pay" deals would mean you would forfeit a huge percentage, like 50-80% or something crazy. Although I've always been suspicious about what they really paid and maybe the lawyer was dodgy.
 
Terry_w said:
I am not saying that as I have no idea what happened. Sounds like not much happened but she was asked to show a receipt - which is coles contractual right with customers entering the premises -by entering the shop you would be agreeing to have your bags inspected on the way out. But a security guard would have no right to touch a person or touch a person's hand bag without their consent.
Click to expand...

I think we're all used to bag searches, her included. It was the whole undercover, plain clothed guard that approached her some distance from the actual shop that spooked her. I have to ask her how far she was but from how she initially described it, she was well on her way out.
 
Sure it's not just loss of face?
Nice that you support your girlfriend but now you're getting all upset over a misunderstanding.
She needs to get back on the horse. You could support her by going into Coles together next time. Even consider apologising to the security guy for not understanding/co-operating with him next time she sees him. You'll all feel better then.
If you want to get back at Coles, shop at Woolies. :eek:
 
How does she know it was a security guard?

It could have been some creep pretending to be one...... in which case Police matter.

The Y-man
 
jerrybee said:
I think we're all used to bag searches, her included. It was the whole undercover, plain clothed guard that approached her some distance from the actual shop that spooked her. I have to ask her how far she was but from how she initially described it, she was well on her way out.
Click to expand...

I know what it's like. I was at the Perth Airport when I noticed a couple of cops looking at me. I started to walk away and the next thing.."aye you"... I am being searched. They even put some kind of a "wand" through my bag. I was clean but, sure, it's intimidating even for me.
 
Terry_w said:
But a security guard would have no right to touch a person
Click to expand...

You sure about this, Terry? Great! Since they can't do a body search, next time I go to Coles, I'm going to stuff a couple of onions/garlic down my bra and smuggle them out. :D

Have you seen the prices of those things, especially Spanish garlic? Ludicrous!:eek:
 
Good luck you will need it.
I know someone who tried to sue/take on Coles as she slipped on a banana peel and she was pregnant, which caused complications with pregnancy, early delivery, plenty of evidence to back it up by the way.

Went on for years, they got zip, Coles got the big guns out, they have a sh@t load of money..... and you want to sue over this, think again, as I would say you are wasting your time and no doubt money in this process

Seriously, you dont believe a company like this would not have safety nets regarding this issue/security??. Move on
 
Hi OP,

While I can understand your frustration, I suspect legal action against Coles won't bear much fruit.

Shop at Woolworths, buy WOW shares.
Don't shop at Coles and don't buy WES. ;)
 
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