Commissioner of Victims Rights v Dobbie

The Commissioner of Victims Rights appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a decision of the Supreme Court that had allowed a victim of domestic violence, Mr Dobbie, to pursue a judicial review of the rejection of his claim for compensation for a "severely disabling" psychological disorder. The dispute centred on whether the delegate assessing the claim had correctly interpreted the meaning of "severely disabling" and whether the delegate was bound by the assessment of a psychologist designated by the Director.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the Supreme Court had erred in finding that the delegate had attributed an incorrect meaning to the term "severely disabling" and whether the delegate’s rejection of the designated expert’s assessment was manifestly unreasonable, particularly in the absence of countervailing evidence. A further issue concerned whether leave to appeal should be granted, considering the relatively small amount at stake in the individual case but the potential relevance to a large number of similar claims, and whether the matter raised a question of principle or public interest.

The Court of Appeal granted the Commissioner an extension of time to file her summons seeking leave to appeal. However, it ultimately refused leave to appeal. The Court noted that while the matter might have broader implications, the errors identified in the judgment below did not warrant setting aside that judgment. Consequently, the Commissioner was ordered to pay the respondent's costs of the proceedings in the Court of Appeal.