Gregory, Wayne v Comcare Australia - [1997] FCA 4

CATCHWORDS

WORKERS’ COMPENSATION - injury sustained by member of RAAF at function in honour of his departure from RAAF - whether injury arising out of, or in the course of, his employment - injury occurring in interval between two discrete periods of work.

WORDS AND PHRASES - “injury arising out of, or in the course of ... employment”.

Safety Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (Cth) s 4(1), s 5(2), s 14(1), s 16

Hatzimanolis v ANI Corporation Ltd (1992) 173 CLR 473
Commonwealth of Australia v Lyon (1979) 24 ALR 300

WAYNE GREGORY v COMCARE AUSTRALIA
No QG 111 of 1996
Cooper J
Brisbane
15 January 1997

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA
QUEENSLAND DISTRICT REGISTRY
GENERAL DIVISION

No QG 111 of 1996

On appeal from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal General
Administrative Division constituted by Mr D W Muller, Senior Member

BETWEEN:
WAYNE GREGORY

Applicant

AND:
COMCARE AUSTRALIA

Respondent

JUDGE MAKING ORDER:          Cooper J
WHERE MADE:  Brisbane
DATE OF ORDER:  15 January 1997

MINUTES OF ORDER

THE COURT ORDERS THAT:

The appeal be dismissed.
The applicant pay the respondent’s costs of and incidental to the appeal to be taxed if not agreed.

Note:Settlement and entry of orders is dealt with in Order 36 of the Federal Court Rules.

IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA
QUEENSLAND DISTRICT REGISTRY
GENERAL DIVISION

No QG 111 of 1996

On appeal from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal General
Administrative Division constituted by Mr D W Muller, Senior Member

BETWEEN:
WAYNE GREGORY

Applicant

AND:
COMCARE AUSTRALIA

Respondent

CORAM:  Cooper J
PLACE:  Brisbane
DATE:  15 January 1997

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

Introduction
This is an application by way of appeal from a decision of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (“the Tribunal”) given on 21 June 1996.

The applicant broke his leg during a social soccer match which took place at a party held in honour of his discharge from the RAAF. He applied for compensation in respect of his injury and, by letter dated 20 September 1994, a delegate of Comcare informed him that liability had been admitted for his injury. On 6 February 1995 a different delegate of Comcare revoked the decision of 20 September 1994 and determined that compensation was not payable in respect of the applicant’s injury. The Tribunal affirmed that determination.
The question of law raised by the appeal is whether, having regard to the findings of fact made by the Tribunal, the Tribunal erred in concluding that the applicant’s injury did not arise out of, or in the course of, his employment.

Facts
The Tribunal’s decision was based on the following findings of fact.

The applicant enlisted in the RAAF on 12 October 1989 and became a member of the Fire Section. On Sunday 7 August 1994, two days before his discharge from the RAAF, the applicant attended a farewell barbecue held in his honour at the Airmen’s Club at RAAF Base 1 CAMD.
The applicant first heard about the proposed farewell one week before through Corporal Attenborough, who told him that the…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Gregory, Wayne v Comcare Australia

Details

AGLC: Gregory, Wayne v Comcare Australia [1997] FCA 4
Case: [1997] FCA 4
Decision Date: 15 JANUARY 1997

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Wayne Gregory, a former member of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), sought compensation from Comcare Australia for an injury he sustained during a farewell barbecue held in his honour. The injury occurred during a social soccer match at the event. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (the Tribunal) had previously determined that the injury did not arise out of, or in the course of, Gregory’s employment, and thus, Comcare was not liable for compensation. Gregory appealed this decision to the Federal Court of Australia.

The central legal issue was whether, based on the facts as found by the Tribunal, the injury Gregory sustained during the soccer match at the farewell barbecue was one that arose out of, or in the course of, his employment under the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (Cth). The Act stipulates that Comcare is liable to pay compensation for an injury if it results from the employee's employment and is a physical or mental injury arising out of, or in the course of, the employee’s employment.

The Court examined the principles set forth in Hatzimanolis v ANI Corporation Ltd, where the High Court emphasized the need for a unifying principle to determine if an injury occurring between work periods is within the course of employment. The Court found that the Tribunal's decision was consistent with the principle that an injury occurring in an interval between two discrete periods of work does not typically fall within the course of employment. The Tribunal had found that the farewell barbecue and the subsequent soccer match occurred outside the applicant's regular working hours and that the event was a private function not funded or officially endorsed by the RAAF. The Court concluded that the Tribunal's findings were not unreasonable and that the injury did not arise out of, or in the course of, Gregory’s employment.

The Court dismissed the appeal, holding that there was no legal error in the Tribunal's decision. Consequently, Comcare was not liable for compensation for the injury Gregory sustained during the farewell event.

Orders