Chambers v The Trustee for Goanna Tracks Trust

The applicant, Chambers, sought to join the respondent, The Trustee for Goanna Tracks Trust, as a third party in proceedings concerning alleged breaches of industrial instruments. Chambers claimed that the Trustee was liable as an accessory to the primary respondent's conduct, which involved the transfer of employment. The dispute centred on whether the Trustee's alleged actions constituted accessory liability for the primary respondent's breaches.

The central legal issue before the Court was the necessary content of an allegation of accessory liability in the context of industrial law. Specifically, the Court had to determine what a party seeking to join another as an accessory must plead to establish a prima facie case for such liability, particularly concerning the transfer of employment.

The Court reasoned that to establish accessory liability, the applicant must plead facts that demonstrate the alleged accessory had knowledge of the primary contravention and intended to assist in that contravention. Mere knowledge that a contravention might occur, or that the actions taken might facilitate a contravention, is insufficient. The applicant's pleading did not sufficiently particularise the Trustee's knowledge or intention to assist in the alleged breaches of industrial instruments.

Consequently, the Court dismissed the application to join the Trustee as a third party, finding that the pleadings did not disclose a sufficient cause of action for accessory liability.