Morton v Sydney Ferries Corporation (No 2)

The parties in this case were Morton, the plaintiff, and Sydney Ferries Corporation, the defendant. The dispute arose from an incident where the plaintiff was injured while boarding a ferry operated by the defendant. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The plaintiff sought damages for the injuries sustained, and the defendant contested liability and the amount of damages claimed. The court was required to determine the liability of the defendant in the incident and the appropriate amount of damages to be awarded to the plaintiff.

The primary legal issue the court had to decide was whether the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff and whether this duty was breached, leading to the plaintiff's injuries. The court also needed to determine if the defendant's actions were the sole cause of the plaintiff's injuries, and if so, what the appropriate measure of damages should be. Furthermore, the court had to consider the costs associated with the litigation and whether there was any reason to deviate from the usual rule that costs follow the event.

The court found that the defendant did owe a duty of care to the plaintiff and that this duty was breached when the plaintiff was injured while boarding the ferry. The court also determined that the defendant's actions were the sole cause of the plaintiff's injuries. Regarding costs, the court held that there was no good reason to depart from the ordinary rule that costs follow the event. Consequently, the plaintiff was awarded damages for the injuries sustained, and the defendant was ordered to pay the plaintiff's legal costs.