CARAVAN PARK ELDER ABUSE.

This is like “The Castle” except it’s not funny.

We never thought our entire lives would lead us to the High Court of Australia.

We pooled our entire life savings to establish our own ‘dream’. Our own humble retirement community in rural NSW.

Everything that we had worked for our entire lives had led us to this moment. Each of us had purchased an allotment that would be our forever homes.

Until it wasn’t. We were ‘easy targets’ for motivated people who took our life savings.

For years we asked ASIC and Fair Trading to intervene but they did not care because we are just a bunch of pensioners, not wealthy businesses.

After 5 years in the courts we’re still fighting to keep our homes.

Who do we have if we don’t have the Government Departments on our side? You!

We have the people. The only thing we can rely on is the people. You & us!

Please support us by donating to this GoFundMe to allow us to take this case to the High Court.

This fight is not just for us. Winning this will be a warning to anyone who thinks that retirees in caravan parks, retirement villages or seniors living are an easy target. We are not going down without a fight! But we need your help.

Here’s to people power!

The TIMELINE of what happened to us

2012 Two “grey nomads” Graeme Booker and Janet Kelly formed Coolah Home Base Pty Ltd which bought a caravan park and sold “allotments” to about 20 retirees. It was promoted as affordable house and land packages from under $100,000. The retirees bought or built homes to live in for the rest of their lives.

2014 Booker and Kelly (sole directors of CHB) issue themselves enough shares to gain majority control of the company. The retirees ask ASIC to investigate. ASIC is not interested.

2016 Booker and Kelly refuse to give the retiree/shareholders accounts to explain why their weekly site fees were disappearing with no apparent benefit to the retirees.

2018 Retirees start court action.

2019 Booker and Kelly set up a new company and sell CHB's land to it. They insist that the retirees pay them about $200 per week or they'll be evicted. The retirees ask NSW Fair Trading to intervene, they are not interested.

2019 The People's Solicitors take on the cause on a "no-win, no fee" basis. The retirees are already out of pocket more than $100,000 for legal costs.

2022 NSW Supreme Court upholds a finding that Booker and Kelly had "oppressed" the other shareholders and appoints a liquidator but the retirees are ordered to pay over $100,000 legal costs. The liquidator wants another $100,000 plus.

2023 The retirees file an appeal in the NSW Court of Appeal, arguing that even if each individual step was somehow legal, the entire scam was unconscionable. The appeal is dismissed and the retirees ordered to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars legal costs.

2024 The retirees apply to the High Court of Australia for special leave to appeal.

The LEGAL TEAM: The Peoples Solicitors bridge the gap between equity and the law. They have acted largely pro-bono, but a High Court appeal is very costly.

Please give what you can, and share this with your networks!