Orr v Cobar Management Pty Ltd

[2019] NSWDC 796

District Court

New South Wales

• Amendment notes

Medium Neutral Citation:	Orr v Cobar Management Pty Ltd [2019] NSWDC 796
Hearing dates:	23 October 2019
Date of orders:	20 December 2019
Decision date:	20 December 2019
Jurisdiction:	Criminal
Before:	Scotting DCJ
Decision:	(1)   I direct that the prosecutor engross the stated case in the appropriate form for submission to the Court of Criminal Appeal.  (2)   I direct that the prosecutor provide the stated case to my Associate on or before 5 pm on 7 February 2020.
Catchwords:	CRIME- Appeal- whether proceedings had been completed- error of law
Legislation Cited:	Criminal Appeal Act 1912 Criminal Procedure Act 1986 Land and Environment Court Rules 1996 Work Health and Safety Act 2011
Cases Cited:	Attorney General for New South Wales v X (2000) 49 NSWLR 653 Batistatos v Roads and Traffic Authority of New South Wales (2006) 226 CLR 256 Charara v Director of Public Prosecutions [2001] NSWCCA 140 Charles Forte Investments Ltd v Amanda [1964] Ch 240 Collector of Customs v Afga-Gevaert Ltd (1996) 186 CLR 389 Collector of Customs v Pozzolanic Enterprises Pty Ltd (1993) 43 FCR 280 Commissioner of Taxation v Brixius (1987) 16 FCR 359 Elias v Director of Public Prosecutions [2012] NSWCA 302 Environmental Protection Authority of New South Wales v Goulburn Wool Scour Pty Ltd [2004] NSWCCA 439 Environmental Protection Authority v Land and Environment Court (2004) 144 A Crim R 198 Ex parte McGavin; Re Berne and Others (1946) 46 SR 58 Federal Commissioner of Taxation v Trail Brothers Steel & Plastics Pty Ltd (2010) 186 FLR 410 Norrie v NSW Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages [2013] NSWCA 145 Orr v Cobar Management Pty Ltd [2019] NSWDC 224 R v Bozatsis and Spanakakis (1997) 97 A Crim R 296 R v Cheng (1999) 48 NSWLR 616 R v Vincent [2002] NSWCCA 110 Registrar Court of Appeal v Craven (No 2) (1995) 80 A Crim R 272 Rogers v R (1994) 181 CLR 251 Talay v R [2010] NSWCCA 308 Vetter v Lake Macquarie City Council (2001) 202 CLR 439 Waterford v Commonwealth (1987) 163 CLR 54 Williams v Bill Williams Pty Ltd [1971] 1 NSWLR 547 Williams v The Queen (1986) 161 CLR 278
Category:	Procedural and other rulings
Parties:	Stephen Orr (Prosecutor) Cobar Management Pty Ltd (Defendant)
Representation:	Counsel: J Agius SC/C Magee (Prosecutor) A Moses SC/J Alderson (Defendant)     Solicitors: SafeWork NSW (Prosecution) Seyfarth Shaw (Defendant)
File Number(s):	2016/174236
Publication restriction:	None

Judgment

Introduction

1. Cobar Management Pty Ltd (the defendant) has pleaded not guilty to a charge that as a person who had a health and safety duty under section 19(1) Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (the Act), it failed to comply with that duty and thereby exposed James Hern, a worker at work in the business or undertaking, to a risk of death or serious injury contrary to section 32 of the Act.

2. Mr Hern was employed by the defendant in the services crew at its CSA mine at Cobar (the mine). At…