February 21st, 2012
Elphick v Westfield Shopping Centre Management Company Pty Limited [2011] NSWCA 356
(Judgement 25 November 2011)
Claims involving employees of independent contractors and their principals are increasingly common. The amendments to the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 in Queensland which mean Claimants will recover more against an occupier than their employer in these cases will make them more common (even where liability is weak).
As the New South Wales Court of Appeal conceded in Elphick, the decided cases have at times shown an “uncertainly of approach”. Elphick is a reminder that a principal’s duty is different to and lower than the special relationship an employer owes an employee. Against this background an employer should never just assume they are entitled to contribution from their principal.
Read the rest of this entry »
February 21st, 2012
The Case
The Industrial Court of Queensland recently handed down a decision in Theresa Helen Ward and Q-Comp (C/2011/39) on 7 December 2011 upholding the Queensland Industrial Commission’s decision that Theresa Ward did not sustain an “injury” pursuant to Section 32 of the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 (“WCRA”).
Read the rest of this entry »
December 15th, 2011
Author: Sunny Martin (Law Clerk)
Some recent Queensland decisions indicate that the bar to success for Claimants in workplace injury cases has been significantly lowered of late. In Tabcorp v Dank the Court of Appeal held an employer was negligent for failing to provide training and instruction on the correct method to lift a box of photocopy paper. In Brisbane City Council v Miles an employer was found liable for the injuries of a bus driver who was criminally assaulted whilst walking through a park with a cash box. However, Justice McMeekin’s recent decision in Stitz is a reminder that an employer’s duty is not absolute and that with a careful analysis of relevant factors and how they relate, “evidence” can become an employer’s best friend.
Read the rest of this entry »
November 30th, 2011
Author: Chris Murphy
STATE OF QUEENSLAND V ALLEN [2011] QCA 311
(JUDGEMENT 4 NOVEMBER 2011)
The Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002 (PIPA) and other pre-court regimes in Queensland significantly derogate legal professional privilege, perhaps more so than any other Australian jurisdiction. Indeed in the often cited decision of Parr v Bavarian Steak House Pincus JA said “… the cards must be on the table; and, I might add they must be face up.”
Read the rest of this entry »
November 23rd, 2011
Author: Cindy Badke
Hannah v Barellan Bobcat Hire Pty Ltd was a claim for personal injuries made against an employer by a worker as a consequence of a workplace assault.
It is worth considering due to recent cases proceeding to the Court of Appeal relating to workplace assaults, one of which was successful (Brisbane City Council v Miles [2011] QCA 250) and one of which was not (Lusk & Anor v Sapwell [2011] QCA 059).
However both Miles and Sapwell involved allegations of negligence on the part of the employer for third party criminal activity. Hannah relates to an alleged assault by a co-worker and employer.
Read the rest of this entry »
October 10th, 2011
Author: Elizabeth O’Connor
The Queensland Industrial Relations Minister has recently announced the formation of a workplace bullying reference group to examine options for action that could be taken in Queensland to address bullying in the workplace, mirroring similar action recently taken by the Victorian legislature. The Minister says that the reference group will look into the incidence of bullying in the state and strategies to prevent bullying in Queensland workplaces.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 19th, 2011
Author: Georgina Wong
President Hall of the Industrial Court upheld the Industrial Magistrates’ Court’s decision that driving a motor vehicle in excess of the speed limit into a residential home does not amount to a contravention of 328A of the Criminal Code in respect of dangerous driving.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 6th, 2011
Bruce Thomas Lawyers is a rapidly expanding specialist insurance and litigation firm. We are recruiting for a senior associate/junior partner in insurance litigation to work with the senior partner. The ideal candidate is:
. Ambitious and seeking superior reward for superior performance
. Genuinely committed to delivering value and results to clients
. Dissatisfied with traditional firm structures and expectations
. Looking to progress their career to the next level
Applications, treated in strictest confidence, to lg@btlawyers.com.au
June 8th, 2011
Author: Nicole Lythall
The Factual Background
The Plaintiff worked as a medical sales representative at the Defendant’s premises at Cleveland. Those premises were divided into a number of work stations or cubicles. The Plaintiff’s work station comprised a partitioned area containing a desk and a chair on castors. The partition wall on her left hand side had a number of overhead shelves while the partition wall on her right hand side had a map attached to it.
When the Plaintiff first commenced work, the chair was positioned on the carpeted floor. However, some weeks after commencing employment, plastic mats were provided by the Defendant and placed under the chair in each work station.
The Plaintiff was planning a sales trip on the day in question. She stood up from her chair to retrieve a book from the top shelf on the left hand side of her work station then turned to look at the map on the right hand side of the work station. As she commenced to sit back down, she found the chair wasn’t there and fell to the floor fracturing her sacrum.
In addition, the Plaintiff claimed to have developed a secondary psychiatric/psychological injury.
Read the rest of this entry »
April 27th, 2011
Author: Charles Hartley
On 5th April 2011 Coroner John Hutton delivered his findings following an inquest into the death of baby Samara Lee Hoy who died shortly after birth on 8th November 2008 at John Flynn Private Hospital (“JFH”), a private hospital on the Gold Coast run by Ramsay Health Care.
Read the rest of this entry »
