Baysari v Walkom

The plaintiff, Baysari, brought proceedings against the defendant, Walkom, alleging negligence. The dispute concerned the assessment of damages awarded to the plaintiff. The appeal was heard in the Court of Appeal of New South Wales before Stein, Giles and Hodgson JJA.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the original verdict and judgment for damages awarded to the plaintiff were appropriate, or if they should be set aside and varied. This involved a review of the quantum of damages awarded, with the court considering various challenges to the assessment.

The Court of Appeal determined that the original judgment should be set aside. In its place, the court entered a verdict and judgment for the plaintiff for a reduced amount of $423,892, with the judgment to take effect from 6 March 2001. The court made no order for costs, but granted liberty to apply in relation to a different order for costs, contingent on an offer of compromise. This application was to be made by notice of motion within seven days, accompanied by written submissions, with responsive submissions to follow within a further seven days. The application would be decided on the written submissions unless a hearing was requested.