Menzies Property Services Pty Ltd v Sommerville

Menzies Property Services Pty Ltd appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against a decision of the Workers Compensation Commission concerning a claim for workers compensation. The dispute centred on the interpretation of section 38 of the *Workers Compensation Act* and whether Regulation 73N of the *Workers Compensation (General) Regulations* modified the operation of the time period prescribed by section 38.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether Regulation 73N operated to extend the 52-week period of compensation provided for in section 38 of the Act in circumstances where the worker's incapacity for work continued beyond that period. The court was required to determine the interplay between the statutory time limit and the specific regulation.

The Court of Appeal held that Regulation 73N did not have the effect of extending the 52-week period of compensation stipulated in section 38 of the Act. The court reasoned that the regulation dealt with the calculation of weekly payments and did not override the express time limitation imposed by the statute. Consequently, the appeal was allowed, and the award was varied to reflect a different calculation of weekly payments and a revised end date for compensation, with credit to be given for payments already made.