New South Wales v Godfrey

The New South Wales Court of Appeal considered the liability of the State of New South Wales, through its Department of Corrections, for injuries sustained by the respondent, Mr. Godfrey, following the escape of a prisoner from gaol. Mr. Godfrey alleged that the Department owed him a duty of care to prevent the prisoner's escape and that its breach of this duty caused his injuries.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the Department of Corrections owed a duty of care to Mr. Godfrey, a member of the public, to take reasonable steps to prevent the escape of a prisoner. This involved determining whether the relationship between the Department and Mr. Godfrey was such that a duty of care arose, considering factors such as reasonable foreseeability of harm, the Department's control over the prisoner, and any assumption of responsibility. The Court also had to consider the extent of any such duty and whether the harm suffered by Mr. Godfrey was too remote.

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, finding that the Department of Corrections did not owe a duty of care to Mr. Godfrey in the circumstances. The Court reasoned that while the Department had control over the prisoner, this control did not extend to imposing a duty to protect every member of the public from potential harm caused by an escaped prisoner. The Court distinguished the present case from situations where a special relationship or assumption of responsibility might give rise to a duty of care, emphasizing that the general duty of the state in relation to prisoners did not extend to a specific duty owed to individual members of the public in this manner.