Attorney-General for New South Wales v Perpetual Trustee Company (Ltd)

The Attorney-General for New South Wales brought an action against Perpetual Trustee Company (Ltd) concerning the right of the Crown to sue for damages for loss of service when a member of the police force was injured. The dispute centred on whether the common law action *per quod servitium amisit* was available to the Crown in relation to its police officers, given the statutory framework governing the police force in New South Wales. The case was heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether a member of the police force in New South Wales, appointed under the *Police Regulation Act 1899-1947* (N.S.W.), was a servant of the Crown in such a way as to found an action *per quod servitium amisit* for the loss of their services due to injury. This required the court to consider the nature of the relationship between the Crown and police officers, and whether this relationship was altered by the statutory provisions governing their appointment, discipline, and conditions of service.

The Privy Council held that the *per quod servitium amisit* action was not available to the Crown in this context. Their Lordships reasoned that the statutory scheme established by the *Police Regulation Act* created a distinct legal position for police officers, who were not mere servants of the Crown in the traditional sense. The Act defined their powers, duties, and tenure, and while they served the public interest, their relationship with the Crown was not one of master and servant that would support the common law action. The court found that the statutory framework superseded the common law in defining the relationship, and that the Crown could not maintain the action for loss of service.