New South Wales v Doherty

The New South Wales Court of Appeal considered an appeal by the State of New South Wales against a judgment awarded to a police officer, Mr Doherty, who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Mr Doherty alleged that his PTSD was caused by his prolonged exposure to traumatic crime scenes during his service, and that the State, as his employer, had breached its duty of care. The State also appealed against the quantum of damages awarded.

The central legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the State had breached its duty of care to Mr Doherty by failing to take reasonable steps to prevent him from developing PTSD, whether Mr Doherty's own conduct, including the concealment of his symptoms, constituted contributory negligence, and whether the damages awarded should be reduced due to the possibility that his PTSD might have become entrenched regardless of the State's actions.

The Court of Appeal found that the State had breached its duty of care to Mr Doherty. It reasoned that the employer had a responsibility to take reasonable steps to protect its employees from foreseeable psychiatric injury, particularly given the nature of police work. While acknowledging that Mr Doherty had concealed some of his symptoms, the Court determined that this did not entirely absolve the employer of its duty. The Court also considered the possibility of future entrenchment of the PTSD, but ultimately upheld the finding of liability.

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal in part, substituting the original verdict and judgment for Mr Doherty with a revised sum of $676,486.91, to take effect from 20 May 2010. The appeal was otherwise dismissed, as was Mr Doherty's cross-appeal. The Court ordered that each party bear its own costs of the appeal and cross-appeal, with Mr Doherty to receive a certificate under the Suitors' Fund Act 1951 in respect of his own costs of the appeal.