Steven John Jeffery sues defence lawyer Tony Elliot after spending 11 months in jail for child sex offence he didn’t commit

A man who spent 11 months in prison for a child sex offence he did not commit before having his conviction quashed on appeal is suing one of his former defence lawyers who acted for him during his trial. Steven John Jeffery was convicted in 2017 of a sex attack on a teenage girl, who told a court she was touched inappropriately while sitting at a lunch table surrounded by adults and other children. Mr Jeffery, a middle aged man, always denied the offence — even after a jury convicted him and after he was jailed for three years. After his conviction he launched an appeal, partly on the basis that his lawyers at the time had run his case incompetently. The WA Court of Appeal quashed his conviction in 2018 and criticised Mr Jeffery’s former legal team in the process. The scathing judgement in part read: “In our view, the appellant has demonstrated that he suffered a miscarriage of justice because of the inadequate advice given to him by his legal advisers.” The Court of Appeal also ruled Mr Jeffery was “inadequately advised” about the advantages and disadvantages of choosing not to testify at the trial. “In this regard, the appellant emphasised...that he was not warned that unless he gave evidence there would be no direct evidence to refute the allegations,” the judgement said. Now, Mr Jeffery is taking legal action against one of his lawyers who acted for him at trial, well known defence lawyer Tony Elliot. A writ filed in the Supreme Court reveals Mr Jeffery is seeking costs and damages for Mr Elliot’s alleged “professional negligence” and “breach of his duty of professional care.” The writ has been filed by Mr Jeffery’s new legal team Nigams Legal and Malcolm McCusker QC. Mr Elliot said he could not comment on the matter. In an interview with The West Australian after his release from jail Mr Jeffery said he had somewhat lost faith in the justice system after his experience. He also said he was “absolutely gobsmacked” he was even charged by police. “I always believed there were reasons why the appeal should get up, but I had already lost faith with what was happening with the legal system,” he said. “I can’t change what happened, so I just keep moving forward with the people who have supported me. “I feel tired, stressed and I have anxiety. But worse things happen.”