Leggett v Hawkesbury Race Club Limited (No 4)

In Leggett v Hawkesbury Race Club Limited (No 4), the plaintiff sought compensation for an injury sustained in the course of employment. The dispute involved the interaction between Commonwealth and State laws, specifically the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW). The key issue was whether the State law could limit the Court’s power under the Commonwealth law to order compensation for loss suffered due to a contravention of a civil remedy provision. Additionally, the Court considered whether the sum of compensation under the Fair Work Act should be adjusted to account for workers compensation payments already made to the plaintiff.

The court found that the Workers Compensation Act did not operate to limit the Court's power under the Fair Work Act to order compensation. The Court held that the Fair Work Act conferred broad powers to make any order it considered appropriate, including compensation for loss due to contravention of the civil remedy provision. The State law's limitation on awards of damages was not capable of restricting the Court's power under the Commonwealth law. Furthermore, the Court ruled that the compensation under the Fair Work Act should not be adjusted to account for workers compensation payments already made, as it would result in double compensation for the same injury. The Court rejected the argument that compensation under the Fair Work Act should be dismissed to avoid double compensation, finding no direct or indirect inconsistency between the Commonwealth and State laws that would render the State law invalid.

The Court ordered that the parties must file a draft form of orders and a schedule of calculations by 1 June 2022, in line with the reasons for judgment delivered on the same day.