Bennett-Hillier v Wyong Race Club Ltd - [2024] NSWPIC 611

CERTIFICATE OF DETERMINATION OF MEMBER
CITATION:	Bennett-Hillier v Wyong Race Club Ltd [2024] NSWPIC 611
APPLICANT:	Dayne Bennett-Hillier
RESPONDENT:	Wyong Race Club Limited
MEMBER:	John Isaksen
DATE OF DECISION:	30 October 2024
CATCHWORDS:	WORKERS COMPENSATION - Claim for a general order for the payment of medical expenses for injury and/or consequential condition to the cervical spine; consideration of Fox v Percy in making factual finding as to whether the worker sustained an injury in the course of his employment with the respondent; consideration of Moon v Conmah Pty Limited on determination of a consequential condition; Held – worker did not sustain an injury to his cervical spine in the course of his employment with the respondent; the worker has suffered a consequential condition affecting his cervical spine as a result of injury to lower back; order that the respondent is to pay reasonably necessary medical expenses for treatment of the cervical spine as a consequence of the injury to the worker’s lower back.
DETERMINATIONS MADE:	The Commission determines: 1. The applicant did not sustain an injury to his cervical spine in the course of his employment with the respondent on 6 May 2020. 2. The applicant did not sustain an injury to his cervical spine as a result of multiple falls he has suffered in the course of his employment with the respondent. 3. The applicant has suffered a consequential condition affecting his cervical spine as a result of the injury to his lower back on 6 May 2020. The Commission orders: 1. The respondent is to pay the costs of reasonably necessary medical treatment of the cervical spine as a consequence of the injury sustained by the applicant to his lower back on 6 May 2020.

STATEMENT OF REASONS

BACKGROUND

The applicant in these proceedings, Dayne Bennett-Hillier, sustained an injury to his lumbar spine on 6 May 2020 while in the course of his employment as a jockey with the respondent, Wyong Race Club Ltd, when he fell from a thoroughbred horse in a jump out.
The respondent has admitted liability for the injury to the applicant’s lumbar spine.
The applicant underwent a L5/S1 anterior lumbar fusion on 13 March 2021, performed by
Dr Damodaran, neurosurgeon.
The applicant now seeks a general order for the payment by the respondent of treatment expenses in respect of a compensable condition affecting the cervical spine. The applicant contends that the respondent is liable for such an order for one or more of the following reasons:
(a)    that he sustained a frank injury to his cervical spine on 6 May 2020;
(b)    that he has sustained an injury to his cervical spine as a result of multiple falls he has had in 25 years of work as a jockey, and
(c)    that he has suffered a consequential condition affecting his cervical spine as a result of the injury to his lumbar spine.
The respondent disputes that the applicant has any compensable condition affecting his cervical spine. The respondent also contends that the Personal…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Bennett-Hillier v Wyong Race Club Ltd

Details

AGLC: Bennett-Hillier v Wyong Race Club Ltd [2024] NSWPIC 611
Case: [2024] NSWPIC 611
Decision Date: 30 October 2024

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Bennett-Hillier, a worker, sought compensation from Wyong Race Club Ltd for medical expenses related to injuries and a consequential condition affecting his cervical spine. The claim arose from an incident where the worker suffered a lower back injury in the course of his employment. The case was heard and determined by the court, which had to decide whether the worker's cervical spine injury was sustained in the course of his employment and whether the consequential condition related to the cervical spine was a result of the lower back injury.

The primary legal issues were whether the worker sustained an injury to his cervical spine during his employment with the respondent and whether the consequential condition affecting his cervical spine was a result of the injury to his lower back. The court examined the evidence and applied the principles from Fox v Percy to determine whether there was an injury in the course of employment and Moon v Conmah Pty Limited to assess the consequential condition. The court had to balance the factual findings with the legal criteria set out in these cases.

In its reasoning, the court found that the worker did not sustain an injury to his cervical spine in the course of his employment. However, the court determined that the worker had suffered a consequential condition affecting his cervical spine as a result of the injury to his lower back. The court ordered that the respondent is to pay reasonably necessary medical expenses for treatment of the cervical spine as a consequence of the injury to the worker’s lower back. The court's decision hinged on a detailed analysis of the evidence and the application of relevant legal principles.

The final orders of the court mandated that the respondent is to pay for the reasonably necessary medical expenses for the treatment of the cervical spine as a consequence of the injury to the worker’s lower back. This outcome was based on the finding that while the cervical spine injury was not sustained in the course of employment, the consequential condition was directly linked to the lower back injury.

Orders