Kay Dee | Strategic Counsel — Legal Office of K.D
Advocacy | Litigation Support | Civil Rights
Veritas Representation Office
Perth, Western Australia

29 May 2025

To:
Legal and Compliance Department
Ruah Community Services

Subject: Formal Notification of Legal Exposure Arising from Abandonment, Negligence, Welfare Endangerment, and Freedom of Information Request

To Whom It May Concern,

This correspondence is issued on behalf of my client, K.D, and constitutes formal notice of your organisation’s ongoing exposure to civil, statutory, and procedural liability stemming from your systemic failure to uphold essential obligations of care, safeguarding, and administrative response.

The harm occasioned by your dereliction is not speculative—it is demonstrable, compounding, and directly linked to the actions and inactions of Ruah Community Services across multiple domains of duty. This letter outlines those breaches, sets the framework for escalation, and triggers obligations under state and federal law for immediate compliance and internal mobilisation.

I. Establishment of Non-Delegable Duty

Ruah Community Services’ involvement with K.D was not administrative nor superficial. By assisting with NDIS access, and engaging in broader support across navigation, planning, and disability service ecosystems, your organisation assumed a non-delegable duty of care. The client is a known vulnerable individual with diagnosed cognitive, psychological, and executive functioning impairments, thus qualifying under:

• Disability Services Act 1993 (WA)
• Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (WA)
• Civil Liability Act 2002 (WA)
• Mental Health Act 2014 (WA)
• Established common law tort principles

The abandonment of support without transition protocols, risk assessment, or continuity planning constitutes constructive negligence and institutional abandonment. You created, and then exited, a dependency framework without safeguarding the client’s legal or psychosocial rights. That is a breach of duty.

II. Systemic Enabling of Abuse and Service Collapse

Following your disengagement, K.D was left wholly unsupported despite being visibly incapable of independently navigating high-risk service environments. The resulting exposure included:

• Financial theft by NDIS-funded providers
• Negligence by LACs and intermediary agencies
• Complete functional collapse of disability supports, with no escalation from Ruah

These outcomes were neither unforeseeable nor unprecedented. Your organisation was aware of the risk profile, yet failed to act. By vacating oversight responsibilities, you created the preconditions for this harm.

III. Welfare Neglect & Suicide Risk – Contemporary and Acute Failures

This section refers specifically to the past month, not historic neglect.

Mr Dowley repeatedly communicated active suicidal ideation, distress responses, and urgent safety concerns through verbal and written channels. Despite this:

• No welfare check was initiated in any timely manner
• No internal escalation or clinical referral occurred
• No protective response was triggered by your staff

This inaction may constitute constructive negligence under suicide prevention obligations, as governed by the Mental Health Act 2014 (WA), and also reflects a reckless disregard for welfare under civil liability jurisprudence.

IV. Staff Misconduct and Psychosocial Harm

Mr Dowley has reported significant psychological harm arising from direct interactions with Ruah personnel referred to as “Nina” and “Sheila.” Documented incidents include, but are not limited to:

• “Nina” responding to Mr Dowley’s autistic meltdown by instructing him to “stop,” in direct contravention of clinical knowledge regarding the nature of autistic shutdowns
• Mr Dowley requesting clarification due to documented communication impairments and receiving no reply
• Expressing thoughts of self-harm following the incident and experiencing a prolonged delay exceeding 12 hours before any welfare check was initiated

As a result of these breaches, it is determined that continued contact from either “Nina” or “Sheila” constitutes a material and foreseeable risk to Mr Dowley’s mental safety. Effective immediately, both individuals are permanently barred from all forms of communication, direct or indirect, with Mr Dowley.

Ruah Community Services is required to appoint a new representative who satisfies the following criteria:

• Demonstrable proficiency in neurodivergent communication frameworks
• Verified experience working with individuals with complex trauma profiles
• Formal qualifications or professional certifications in trauma-informed and autism-affirming care

This new representative will serve exclusively as the sole legally authorised point of contact between Ruah Community Services and Mr Dowley, inclusive of all correspondence, updates, and responses pertaining to this legal matter and any future proceedings.

V. Freedom of Information & Compliance Disclosure Notice

The following documents are formally requested:

• All records, files, communications related to Mr K.D
• Complete internal documentation of any expression of suicidality or distress
• A full complaints register extract related to Mr Dowley
• All formal disclosures or required referrals to oversight bodies
• Verification of:
  • National Police Clearance
  • Working With Children Checks
  • Vetting and exclusion protocols
  • Training records related to neurodivergence and safeguarding

Documents must be unredacted, with metadata, within 72 hours. Exemptions must cite legal justifications.

VI. Escalation Pathways – Legal Obligations to Refer

Ruah must escalate this matter to all applicable oversight bodies within 72 hours, including:

• Ombudsman WA
• Disability Services Commissioner
• AHRC
• NDIS Abuse and Neglect Hotline

VII. Notice of Compliance Requirements (72 Hours)

Ruah Community Services must within 72 hours:

• Acknowledge this letter
• Confirm FOI processing
• Appoint and verify a new representative
• Certify permanent exclusion of “Nina” and “Sheila”
• Confirm escalation actions

VIII. Representation and Future Contact

All contact must occur through the newly appointed representative. Kay Dee is not the contact point unless escalation resumes.

All rights reserved. Issued without prejudice.

Yours sincerely,
Kay Dee
Strategic Counsel
Veritas Representation Office
On behalf of Mr K.D.