Bonjour v Cachet Holdings Pty Ltd t/as Mulberry Tree Childcare (No 2)

Bonjour brought proceedings against Cachet Holdings Pty Ltd t/as Mulberry Tree Childcare (Mulberry Tree) in the Federal Circuit Court. The proceedings related to a general protections application under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), with Bonjour alleging that she was bullied and harassed at work. Bonjour sought compensation and a pecuniary penalty as remedies. The dispute centred on whether Bonjour could adduce expert medical evidence at this stage of the proceedings.

The legal issues before the court were whether it was appropriate to allow the adducing of expert medical evidence at this stage of the proceedings and whether the evidence was relevant to the issues to be determined. Mulberry Tree opposed the application on the basis that it was made late and that the evidence only went to remedy. The court had to determine whether the evidence was relevant to the hearing of the liability issues and whether it was appropriate to admit the evidence at this stage.

The court found that the expert medical evidence related only to the question of any remedy in the event that the substantive allegations were made out. The court held that the evidence was not relevant to the hearing of the liability issues and that admitting the evidence at this stage would serve no good purpose and may distract Bonjour from the task at hand with respect to the liability hearing. The application was dismissed.

The court ordered that Bonjour pay Mulberry Tree’s costs of the application on the standard basis.