Cardona v Penrith City Council

Cardona appealed against a decision of an arbitrator in relation to a claim for workers' compensation under the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998. The appeal was lodged within 28 days of the Arbitrator’s decision, as required by section 352(4) of the Act. Penrith City Council submitted that leave to appeal should not be granted because the amount of compensation at issue did not meet the threshold requirements in section 352(2) of the Act. The Appellant submitted that there had been no assessment by an approved medical specialist, and that such assessments were not required for the application of the threshold test.

The court had to determine whether the appeal met the requirements of section 352 of the Act, and in particular whether the amount of compensation at issue met the threshold requirements of subsections 352(2)(a) and (b). The court noted that the Appellant had submitted that there had been no assessment by an approved medical specialist, and that such assessments were not required for the application of the threshold test. The court noted that where no monetary award had been made in the decision appealed against, subsection 352(2)(b) could have no application. The court also noted that the Appellant had submitted that the threshold test was not dependent upon the assessment of an approved medical specialist.

The court found that the Appellant had not demonstrated that the amount of compensation at issue met the threshold requirements of section 352(2) of the Act. The court found that the Appellant had not provided any evidence to support their claim that the amount of compensation at issue met the threshold requirements. The court found that the Appellant had not demonstrated that the amount of compensation at issue was at least $5,000, or that it was at least 20% of the amount awarded in the decision appealed against. The court found that the Appellant had not demonstrated that the amount of compensation at issue met the threshold requirements of section 352(2) of the Act.

The decision of the Arbitrator was confirmed.