Dutch v Campbelltown City Council

In *Dutch v Campbelltown City Council*, the New South Wales Court of Appeal considered a dispute between Mr Dutch and Campbelltown City Council concerning the Council's alleged negligence in failing to properly maintain a public reserve. Mr Dutch suffered injuries when he tripped and fell on a raised section of a bitumen path within the reserve.

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the Council owed a duty of care to Mr Dutch, and if so, whether it had breached that duty by failing to take reasonable steps to prevent the hazard that caused his fall. The Court also had to consider whether the Council's actions or omissions were causative of Mr Dutch's injuries.

The Court of Appeal affirmed the principles of negligence applicable to occupiers of land. It held that the Council, as the occupier of the public reserve, owed a duty of care to persons lawfully entering the reserve, including Mr Dutch, to take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable risks of injury. The Court found that the raised section of the bitumen path constituted a foreseeable risk. Applying the principles of *Wyong Shire Council v Shirt*, the Court assessed whether the risk was real and not far-fetched or fanciful, and whether a reasonable body of persons, faced with that risk, would have taken precautions. The Court concluded that the Council had failed to take reasonable precautions to maintain the path, and this failure caused Mr Dutch's injuries.

The Court of Appeal allowed Mr Dutch's appeal, setting aside the trial judge's finding of contributory negligence and ordering that the matter be remitted to the Supreme Court for assessment of damages.