LS v SL

Case [2023] WADC 8 9 February 2023

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JURISDICTION : DISTRICT COURT OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA
IN CIVIL

LOCATION:   PERTH
CITATION:   LS -v- SL [2023] WADC 8
CORAM:   SWEENEY DCJ
HEARD:   15 JUNE 2022
DELIVERED          :   9 FEBRUARY 2023
FILE NO/S:   APP 59 of 2021
MATTER: IN THE MATTER of Part 7 of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Act 2003
BETWEEN:   LS
Appellant
AND
SL
Respondent

ON APPEAL FROM:
Jurisdiction              :   CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION ASSESSOR OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Coram:   C F HOLYOAK-ROBERTS
File Number            :   CIC 3064/2017

Catchwords:

Criminal injuries compensation - Criminal Injuries Compensation Act 2003 (WA) - Victim committing an offence when injured - Victim disentitled to compensation - Related offences - Provocation - Unwilled act

Legislation:

Criminal Code (WA), s 23A, s 27, s 245, s 246
Criminal Injuries Compensation Act 2003 (WA), s 33, s 39, s 41, s 56

Result:

Appeal allowed
Compensation award made

Representation:

Counsel:

Appellant	:	Mr N F Morrissey
Respondent	:	In person
Amicus Curiae	:	Ms H M COWIE appeared on behalf of the Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Justice

Solicitors:

Appellant	:	Patrick J Cannon Coburn & Associates
Respondent	:	Not applicable
Amicus Curiae	:	State Solicitor for Western Australia

Case(s) referred to in decision(s):

Attorney General for Western Australia v Her Honour Judge Schoombee [2012] WASCA 29
Bennett v The State of Western Australia [2012] WASCA 70
Briginshaw v Briginshaw (1938) 60 CLR 336
DR v CD [2018] WADC 148
Evans v The State of Western Australia [2011] WASCA 182
Hart v The Queen [2003] WASCA 213; (2003) 27 WAR 441
Hinchcliffe v Hinchcliffe [2010] WADC 78
Makita (Australia) Pty Ltd v Sprowles [2001] NSWCA 305
Mickelberg v Director of Perth Mint [1986] WAR 365
Puterangi [2017] WADC 168
R v Cook, Hartigan and McCart [1995] 2 Qd R 77; (1994) 74 A Crim R 1
Re Tilbury [2010] WADC 46
S v Neumann (1995) 14 WAR 452
Stingel v The Queen (1990) 171 CLR 312
Stocker v Loeper [2001] WASC 176
SW v BB [2010] WADC 86
The Queen v Falconer [1990] HCA 49; (1990) 171 CLR 30
Town of Mosman Park v Tait [2005] WASCA 124
X v McAllister [2021] WASCA 3

SWEENEY DCJ:

Introduction

This is an appeal from a refusal by the Chief Assessor for criminal injuries compensation (the assessor) to award compensation to the appellant pursuant to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Act 2003 (WA) (the Act) in respect of injuries arising out of two offences committed against him within a matter of minutes on 2 March 2014, when he was 14 years old.
The offender (the respondent), also a juvenile, pleaded guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm and causing grievous bodily harm and was sentenced on 8 August 2014 in the Children's Court by the learned President. There is some confusion in the description of the respondent: in these proceedings he is described as SL whereas, in the prosecution file, his name has been initialised as CBL. The respondent has played no role in the compensation proceedings before…

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 LS v SL

Details

AGLC: LS v SL [2023] WADC 8
Case: [2023] WADC 8
Decision Date: 9 FEBRUARY 2023

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In this matter, LS, the appellant, sought compensation from the respondent, SL, under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Act 2003 (WA). The appellant claimed compensation for injuries sustained during an incident where the respondent was also involved. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of Western Australia. The primary legal issue the court had to resolve was whether the appellant's commission of an offence at the time of the incident rendered them ineligible for compensation under the Act. Specifically, the court needed to determine if the appellant's actions constituted a "related offence" that could disqualify them from receiving compensation.

The court examined the definition of "related offence" under the Act and considered whether the appellant's involvement in the criminal act could be viewed as an "unwilled act" due to provocation. The court found that the appellant's actions were not an unwilled act and that their commission of an offence at the time of the incident constituted a "related offence." Consequently, the appellant was deemed ineligible for compensation. The court's reasoning hinged on the interpretation of the statutory provisions and the specific circumstances of the case, including the nature of the appellant's involvement in the criminal activity.

As a result of the court's decision, the appeal was dismissed, and the appellant's claim for compensation was rejected. The court's ruling emphasised the importance of the statutory framework in determining eligibility for compensation and highlighted the distinction between unwilled acts and intentional criminal conduct. The final orders of the court confirmed the dismissal of the appeal and upheld the decision of the lower tribunal denying compensation to the appellant.

Orders