Nestlé Australia Ltd v Metri

Nestlé Australia Ltd appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a judgment of the Common Law Division concerning a negligence claim brought by Toufic Metri. The dispute arose from injuries sustained by Mr Metri while operating a forklift at Nestlé's premises.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether Nestlé had breached its duty of care to Mr Metri. Specifically, the court considered whether the risk of a forklift operator being dislodged while the forklift was in motion was foreseeable, and if so, whether Nestlé had taken reasonable precautions against that risk. This included examining the failure to fit the forklift with a seatbelt or other restraint, and the adequacy of Nestlé's system for communicating forklift defects to enable diagnosis and repair. The court also had to assess whether any failure to communicate a defect factually caused the harm suffered by Mr Metri.

The Court of Appeal found that the risk of harm was foreseeable and that Nestlé had failed to take reasonable precautions. The court reasoned that a reasonable person in Nestlé's position would have implemented measures such as fitting a seatbelt or establishing a more robust system for reporting and rectifying defects. The court also concluded that the failure to communicate a defect had caused Mr Metri's injuries.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal dismissed Nestlé Australia Ltd's appeal and Mr Metri's cross-appeal, ordering Nestlé to pay the costs of Mr Metri and Linde Material Handling Pty Ltd.