Jewaid v Superior Structures NSW Pty Ltd - [2024] NSWPIC 381

CERTIFICATE OF DETERMINATION OF MEMBER
CITATION:	Jewaid v Superior Structures NSW Pty Ltd [2024] NSWPIC 381
APPLICANT:	Rami Jewaid
RESPONDENT:	Superior Structures NSW Pty Ltd
MEMBER:	Fiona Seaton
DATE OF DECISION:	17 July 2024
CATCHWORDS:	WORKERS COMPENSATION - Workers Compensation Act 1987; section 66 claim for permanent impairment of accepted lumbar spine injury and consequential left hip condition; left hip condition disputed; Held – the applicant has not sustained a consequential left hip condition as a result of the accepted lumbar spine injury; award for the respondent for the claim made for a consequential left hip condition; matter remitted to the President for referral to a Medical Assessor for assessment of permanent impairment of the lumbar spine.
DETERMINATIONS MADE:	The Commission determines: 1. There is an award for the respondent for the claim made by the applicant that he has suffered a consequential left hip condition. The Commission orders: 2. I remit this matter to the President for referral to a Medical Assessor pursuant to s 321 of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 for assessment as follows; (a) date of injury: 20 March 2017; (b) body systems/parts: lumbar spine, and (c) method of assessment: whole person impairment. 3. The documents to be reviewed by the Medical Assessor are: (a) the Application to Resolve a Dispute and attached documents; and (b) the respondent’s Reply and attached documents.

STATEMENT OF REASONS

BACKGROUND

The applicant, Mr Rami Jewaid, was employed as a part time labourer by the respondent Superior Structures NSW Pty Ltd. The applicant injured his lumbar spine on 20 March 2017 while bending over to tighten Z-bars around columns with a T hammer. The respondent has accepted liability for this injury.
The applicant claims lump sum compensation for 16% whole person impairment for his lumbar spine injury and for a consequential left hip condition.
The respondent issued a notice under s 78 of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 on 17 October 2023 disputing liability for the consequential left hip injury on the basis that it did not result from the accepted lumbar spine injury sustained on 20 March 2017.
The applicant lodged an Application to Resolve a Dispute (ARD) with the Personal Injury Commission (the Commission) on 3 May 2024 claiming lump sum compensation for permanent impairment of the lumbar spine and left hip injuries.
The dispute was listed for conciliation/arbitration for determination of whether the applicant sustained a consequential left hip injury resulting from his accepted lumbar spine injury.

ISSUES FOR DETERMINATION

The parties agree that the issue remaining in dispute is whether the applicant sustained a left hip injury consequential to the accepted lumbar spine injury of 20 March 2017 in the course of his employment with the respondent.
Both parties agreed that should the applicant’s claim for a consequential left hip condition be successful the claim should be remitted to the President for referral to a Medical Assessor for assessment of the degree of permanent impairment of the lumbar…

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.

Keep reading for free

Create a free CaseChat account to read Jewaid v Superior Structures NSW Pty Ltd and more:

Read every judgment in full
Ask AI and get answers linked to paragraphs
See how each paragraph was cited in later cases
Download judgments as PDF or Word

Continue with Google

One click creates your free account or signs you in.

By continuing you agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy.

Details

Case: [2024] NSWPIC 381
Decision Date: 17 July 2024

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Jewaid brought an action against Superior Structures NSW Pty Ltd in the workers compensation context, seeking compensation for a permanent impairment related to a previously accepted lumbar spine injury and a consequential left hip condition. The case was heard in the relevant tribunal, where the primary focus was on the validity and extent of the claimed left hip condition as a consequence of the lumbar spine injury.

The legal issues before the tribunal included whether Jewaid's left hip condition was indeed a consequential injury resulting from the lumbar spine injury, and if so, to what extent this condition contributed to the overall permanent impairment. The tribunal also had to consider whether the left hip condition was sufficiently supported by medical evidence to warrant compensation.

In delivering its decision, the tribunal found that Jewaid had not sustained a consequential left hip condition as a result of the lumbar spine injury. The tribunal noted that the medical evidence did not sufficiently establish the causal link between the lumbar spine injury and the left hip condition. Consequently, the tribunal dismissed Jewaid's claim for compensation related to the left hip condition. However, the tribunal recognised that Jewaid had sustained a permanent impairment due to the lumbar spine injury and remitted the matter to the President for referral to a Medical Assessor to assess the permanent impairment of the lumbar spine. This decision acknowledged the existence of an impairment stemming from the accepted injury but did not extend to the disputed left hip condition.

Orders