Victoria Police has paid out more than $46 million in civil litigation settlements over five years while simultaneously advocating for stronger powers.

Between 2020 and April this year, Victoria Police paid out $46.5 million in civil litigation financial settlements, data obtained by National Indigenous Times has revealed, as several organisations have complained about over-policing and alleged misconduct.

The figures, which Victoria Police provided when requested, include no comment or reasoning behind the individual payouts. National Indigenous Times is not suggesting that all of the payouts are admissions by Victoria Police of guilt or wrongdoing.

It is understood the figures include settlements and court-awarded costs, and come after Victorian police pursued a successful pay deal with the state government earlier this year, which will now see staff receive at least an 18 per cent pay rise over four years, and frontline officers to get a 20 per cent rise.

One barrister who works with First Nations clients told National Indigenous Times on condition of anonymity that the payout figures suggest Victoria Police members are "conducting themselves in ways that are unlawful, improper, and which, ultimately, expose the organisation to civil liability".

In a statement, a Victoria Police spokesperson said litigation incidents are "rare compared with the thousands of interactions our members have with the public every day".

"Financial settlements can fluctuate each year depending on the number of matters and when they were resolved, with some substantive cases running over several years before reaching a conclusion," the spokesperson said.

"Individual settlement amounts are generally not disclosed at the agreement of the parties involved.

"Victoria Police conducts a thorough investigation before the finalisation of any civil matter and our decisions are always based on independent legal advice."

Nonetheless, they do nothing to defuse arguments from critics that Victoria Police regularly use disproportionate and illegal force against people, including minority groups, often without adequate oversight.

National Indigenous Times has regularly heard from Indigenous organisations and individuals about their often negative experiences with police, including allegations of profiling and over-policing.

Previously, the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) has found high rates of bias and conflicts of interest when police investigate complaints made by Aboriginal people.

Earlier this year, the Victorian government passed legislation giving police "almost unlimited powers" to stop-and-frisk people in designated areas, despite accusations of racial profiling from research groups.

The new laws will allow the Police Commissioner to declare a location a "designated search area," giving police the power to search people for weapons without a warrant, for up to six months, instead of the previous 12 hours.

Senior Lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, Sohini Mehta, told National Indigenous Times: "While Victoria Police are paying out millions of dollars for misconduct, the Allan Government has rewarded them with excessive, sweeping and unchecked powers – like stop and search powers passed just this year."

Data from the Centre Against Racial Profiling found Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are 11 times more likely to be searched by Victoria Police than people perceived as Caucasian.

"We know that excessive police powers are disproportionately wielded against First Nations people," Ms Mehta said.

"The Allan Government needs to stop handing carte-blanche powers to police, and properly resource a new, effective and independent oversight body to hold police to account."

Furthermore, tens of thousands of Victorians had no weapon on them but were searched regardless in "designated areas", data released under freedom of information to civil rights organisation Liberty Victoria found, with weapons seized in only one per cent of all searches without a warrant or reasonable suspicion.

Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) chief executive Nerita Waight told The Age earlier this year any community-led program would be de-funded if it operated at a one per cent success rate as Victorian Police did for their searches, but instead, police were given a licence to racially profile disadvantaged people under the guise of community safety and without demonstrable results.

She had previously accused some members of Victoria Police of "fearmongering" by anonymously talking about youth crime to some media outlets.

The police union also pushed back heavily on the "health-based response" towards public drunkenness in late 2023, arguing it would impact their ability to protect the community, despite strong evidence the opposite was occurring under the previous laws.

The same year, then-Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton acknowledged historical structural racism by Victorian police towards Indigenous people when appearing before the Yoorrook Justice Commission, whilst Anthony Carbines accepted the current police accountability system was "not fit for purpose".

The hearings heard evidence from a number of Indigenous people about their experiences with police misconduct.

Gunditjmara woman Aunty Doreen Lovett told of her teenage son being assaulted by police after being arrested for a crime he didn't commit, only withdrawing the complaint for excessive force when they discovered the investigators worked at the same station as the officers involved.

Indigenous man Eathan Cruse told the hearings about his house being raided for a crime he never committed. Both he and his father, David, alleged they were racially and physically abused by Victorian and federal police officers in legal cases put towards the Victorian Supreme Court. Eathan was awarded $400,000 and David settled confidentially.

"I was just getting hit from all sides, felt like they were taking turns beating me up, because I can't see who's behind me, felt like a few of them were hitting me. I ended up passing out as they were beating me," Ethan said.

There has been no apology from Victoria Police, who continue to uphold their original findings, which determined the officers had not acted unlawfully.

This, despite a judge saying she believed one officer was not a "truthful witness," and two officers had corroborated stories to make their statements match, calling it "more than 'poor practice'" and arguing police conduct during the raid was both cowardly and a "brutal attack".