Cricket: Hookes' widow sues bouncer over death

CANBERRA - A lawyer says he hopes a civil court action against a former bouncer over the death of David Hookes will give some solace to the test cricketer's widow.

Former bouncer Zdravko Micevic was acquitted on Monday of killing Hookes.

The 23-year-old, who now works as a concreter, admitted punching the Victorian cricket coach after ejecting him from a St Kilda hotel in Melbourne on January 18 last year.

But he said the blow that felled Hookes - who died of head injuries the following day - was in self-defence.

Hookes' widow, Robyn, is suing Micevic and the hotel owners who employed him in a civil case before the Victorian Supreme Court.

Robyn Hookes' lawyer, Eugene Arocca, said he hoped the civil justice system would succeed where the criminal system failed.

"Most people equate justice with seeing what the criminal system does," he told ABC radio.

"The criminal system has spoken and to that degree she has to, I would hope, ultimately accept that it's done its bit.

"We now have to rely on the civil system to give her some solace in the outcome of that case."

Robyn Hookes filed the suit in December against Micevic, the owners of the Beaconsfield Hotel and the security firm Micevic worked for, alleging they breached their duty of care to her husband.

She is seeking damages to cover the loss of her husband's income.

"In some regards you could almost equate it to the OJ Simpson case where criminally they were not able to convict Mr Simpson but civilly they were able to get damages out of him for what happened," Arocca said.

Micevic's lawyer, Terry Forrest, said his client and several colleagues shared "a couple of drinks" after the verdict. He would not comment on Micevic's immediate future.

- AAP