Clarke & Walker Pty Ltd v Thew

Clarke & Walker Pty Ltd (the appellant) appealed to the High Court of Australia from a judgment of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned the appellant's liability for damages arising from a collision between a motor vehicle owned and driven by the appellant and a motor vehicle driven by the respondent. The collision occurred on a public road, and the respondent suffered injuries and damage to his vehicle.

The High Court was required to determine whether the appellant was vicariously liable for the negligence of its employee, who was driving the appellant's vehicle at the time of the accident. Specifically, the court had to consider whether the employee was acting within the scope of his employment at the time of the collision, or if he had deviated from his employment for his own purposes.

The court found that the employee had been instructed to drive the appellant's vehicle to a particular destination for a work-related purpose. However, the employee had taken a significant detour to visit a friend before proceeding to his intended destination. The court applied the principle that an employer is vicariously liable for the acts of an employee if those acts are done in the course of employment. A deviation from the employer's instructions, even if for the employee's own purposes, does not necessarily take the employee outside the scope of employment if the deviation is not so substantial as to amount to a complete departure from the employer's business. In this instance, the court held that the detour, while a breach of instructions, was not so extensive as to remove the employee from the scope of his employment.

The appeal was dismissed, and the appellant was held liable for the damages awarded to the respondent.