Khanna v Woolworths Group Limited

The applicant, Ms. Khanna, sought leave to appeal against a decision of the District Court of New South Wales that dismissed her claim for damages against the respondent, Woolworths Group Limited. Ms. Khanna's claim arose from a slip and fall incident that occurred at a Woolworths supermarket. The District Court had found that there was no breach of duty by Woolworths, that the risk of injury was obvious, and that a limitation defence was also made out.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether there was an injustice in the rejection of Ms. Khanna's claim, specifically concerning the proposed challenge to the factual findings made by the primary judge. This involved considering whether the appeal raised any significant issue of principle that warranted appellate intervention.

Gleeson and Leeming JJA dismissed the summons seeking leave to appeal. Their Honours concluded that the proposed grounds of appeal did not raise any issue of principle and that there was no demonstrable injustice in the District Court's rejection of Ms. Khanna's claim. The court found that the appeal was essentially an attempt to re-litigate factual findings that had been properly made by the primary judge.

Consequently, the summons seeking leave to appeal was dismissed, and Ms. Khanna was ordered to pay the respondent's costs in the Court of Appeal.