Lake Alice Hospital Photo: PUBLIC DOMAIN./ Pawful
Former High Court judge Paul Davison will act as an independent arbiter over the Lake Alice torture compensation.
Many of the roughly 450 young people at Lake Alice between 1972 and 1980 received electric shocks and painful drugs as punishments, and others were sexually abused.
Cabinet in December set aside $22.68 million for redress covering a new written apology, access to support and rehabilitation, and one-off payments to the survivors of the former psychiatric hospital.
Survivors can choose to receive $150,000 through a simpler "expedited" process, with payments beginning in March.
Alternatively, they could choose to have Davison assess their individual claims to tailor payments to their personal circumstances.
The individual process has a cutoff date of 30 April. Those wanting the expedited payment have a cutoff date of 30 September.
The government said all payments will be complete by 2025.
They will be made on a final settlement basis and will be exempt from being treated as income and will not affect the recipient's tax-status or their entitlement to Ministry of Social Development (MSD) support.
Lead coordination minister for the response to the Abuse in Care report Erica Stanford said Davison - who had been working as a lawyer after retiring from the High Court in late 2023 - had assisted the inquiry into the death of a patient by electric shocks as Oakley Hospital, in 1983.
"Guided by terms of reference, Hon Davison KC will independently assess the claims of those who choose this [expedited] pathway. I would like to thank him for his willingness to undertake this important role," she said.
Davison's appointment begins on Monday, 10 February, concluding by the end of September.
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