Fabre v Lui

The Court of Appeal of New South Wales heard an appeal in *Fabre v Lui*. The dispute concerned a claim in negligence brought by a tenant against the owner of a home. The tenant had suffered injury when a stove rangehood, affixed to the kitchen wall by a handyman engaged by the owner approximately three years earlier, fell upon them. The central question was whether the owner, as occupier of the premises, had breached their duty of care to the tenant.

The legal issues before the court were whether the owner was negligent in engaging a handyman to affix the rangehood without making enquiries as to the handyman's qualifications and experience, and whether this alleged negligence caused the tenant's injuries. The court was required to determine the scope of the occupier's duty of care in such circumstances and whether the owner's actions or omissions fell below the standard of reasonable care expected of a householder.

The court dismissed the appeal, upholding the primary judge's decision. The reasoning focused on the owner's duty to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm to persons on the premises. While the owner had engaged a handyman, the court found that there was no evidence to suggest that the owner knew or ought to have known that the handyman was unqualified or that the installation was defective. The passage of three years between the installation and the incident also weighed against a finding of negligence on the part of the owner, as the owner was not expected to foresee that a seemingly secure installation would fail after such a period without any intervening event. The court applied the principles of negligence, requiring proof of a breach of duty and causation, and found that these elements were not established against the owner.

The appeal was dismissed with costs.