Boral Besser Masonry Limited v Jabarkhill

Boral Besser Masonry Limited appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against a judgment of the District Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned a claim for workers compensation brought by Mr. Jabarkhill against his employer, Boral Besser Masonry Limited.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the District Court judge had erred in law by admitting certain evidence during the trial. Specifically, the appellant argued that the evidence in question was inadmissible hearsay and that its admission had prejudiced their defence, leading to an unfair trial.

The Court of Appeal found that the District Court judge had indeed erred in admitting the evidence. The Court reasoned that the evidence constituted hearsay and did not fall within any recognised exception to the rule against hearsay. Consequently, the admission of this evidence was considered a material error of law that had likely influenced the outcome of the trial.

Accordingly, the appeal was allowed, and a new trial was ordered in the District Court.