Morland and Australian Postal Corporation - [2007] AATA 1292

Administrative Appeals Tribunal
DECISION AND REASONS FOR DECISION [2007] AATA 1292
ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS TRIBUNAL )
) Nos A2005/343 and A2006/63

GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION )

Re ELIZABETH MORLAND

Applicant

And

AUSTRALIAN POSTAL CORPORATION

Respondent

DECISION

Tribunal Mr S. Webb, Member
Date2 May 2007
PlaceCanberra

Decision
The decisions under review are set aside and in place thereof the Tribunal decides that Ms Morland sustained a bilateral upper limb injury on 15 September 2005 and a subsequent injury in the course of her employment on 1 December 2005.

............(Signed)...............
Mr S. Webb, Member

3.      Australia Post asserts that Ms Morland did not suffer an injury on either date. Australia Post says that Ms Morland’s evidence is not reliable and that her description of symptoms over time is not consistent. In Australia Post’s submission there is no clear diagnosis of what, if anything, is wrong with Ms Morland and in the absence of any observable or objective evidence of injury the decisions under review should be affirmed. Furthermore, Ms Morland’s own evidence concerning her tree climbing and tree surgery activities indicates that she was not in fact injured in the manner claimed.
4.      As will appear I do not agree.
5.      Under the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (the Act) Australia Post, as a licensed corporation, is liable to compensate an employee in relation to an injury that causes incapacity for work or impairment (s.14) or requires medical treatment (s.16). ‘Injury’ is defined to include a physical injury arising out of or in the course of the employment, or a disease that was contributed to in a material degree by the employment, or an aggravation of either such an injury (s.4). The word ‘material’ imposes an evaluative threshold below which a causal connection may be disregarded[1], whereby all relevant contributing factors must be evaluated in order to ascertain whether the contribution of the particular employment was material[2].
[1] Comcare v Canute (2005) 148 FCR 232 at paragraph 67
[2] Comcare v Sahu Khan [2007] FCA 15 at paragraph 16
6.      I do not accept Australia Post’s submission that Ms Morland’s evidence is generally unreliable. Ms Morland is a person with firm views concerning the causation of the various symptoms she experienced prior to her employment by Australia Post and of her upper limb symptomatology since July 2005. However, that does not render her evidence unreliable or compel a finding that she is a liar. Nevertheless, I will proceed to evaluate her uncorroborated evidence with caution.
7.      I am reasonably satisfied that Ms Morland suffered an injury on 15 September 2005. Ms Morland experienced aching, stiffness and discoloration in her left wrist and hand, and pain, weakness, tingling and discoloration in her right forearm, wrist and hand in the course of her duties at work on 15 September 2005.
8.      I do not accept Australia Post’s submission that there was no objective evidence of injury to support Ms Morland’s claimed symptoms on 15 September 2005. On 16 September 2005 Dr D. McGrath,…

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.

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Details

Case: [2007] AATA 1292
Decision Date: 2 May 2007

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Morland and Australian Postal Corporation, the dispute centred around the determination of injury claims by Ms Morland, an employee of the Australian Postal Corporation, concerning bilateral arm symptoms and subsequent injuries. The matter was heard and determined by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, with subsequent judicial review by the Federal Court.

The primary legal issues revolved around whether Ms Morland's bilateral arm symptoms and subsequent injury were sustained in the course of her employment, and whether the Australian Postal Corporation was liable for compensation under the relevant legislative framework. The court was required to consider the evidence presented regarding the injuries, the diagnosis of these injuries, and the extent to which they were work-related. The determination of compensability hinged on whether the injuries had a material contribution from the employment conditions and whether the symptoms were objectively verifiable.

The court found that the Tribunal's initial decisions did not sufficiently address the evidence and the statutory requirements for compensation. The court held that the Tribunal should have given more weight to the objective symptoms presented by Ms Morland and should have reasonably satisfied itself that the injuries were materially contributed to by her employment. The court also noted that the diagnosis of the symptoms, while uncertain, did not preclude a finding of compensability if other evidence supported the claim. Ultimately, the court set aside the Tribunal's decisions and directed the Tribunal to reconsider the matter with a proper application of the relevant statutory provisions.

The final orders of the court required the Tribunal to determine anew that Ms Morland sustained a bilateral upper limb injury on 15 September 2005 and a subsequent injury on 1 December 2005 in the course of her employment. The court's decision underscored the importance of a thorough assessment of the evidence and the application of statutory criteria in determining compensability for work-related injuries.

Orders

Orders of the court

The decisions under review are set aside and in place thereof the Tribunal decides that Ms Morland sustained a bilateral upper limb injury on 15 September 2005 and a subsequent injury in the course of her employment on 1 December 2005.

Background

Background to the litigation

Full text does not contain this section.

Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

Full text does not contain this section.

Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION		)
Re		ELIZABETH MORLAND