Paris v Woolstar Pty Ltd - [2022] NSWPIC 83

CERTIFICATE OF DETERMINATION OF MEMBER
CITATION:	Paris v Woolstar Pty Ltd [2022] NSWPIC 83
APPLICANT:	Derek Brett Paris
RESPONDENT:	Woolstar Pty Ltd
MEMBER:	Cameron Burge
DATE OF DECISION:	28 February 2022
CATCHWORDS:	WORKERS COMPENSATION - Claim for permanent impairment compensation; injury to certain body parts accepted, others disputed; causation; whether applicant suffered injury to cervical spine, left shoulder and/ or a consequential condition to his right knee; Kooragang Cement Pty Ltd v Bates followed; Castro v State Transit Authority discussed; Held- a common-sense evaluation of the evidence establishes the applicant suffered injury to his cervical spine; there is contemporaneous complaint and investigation of that body system; the evidence establishes the applicant suffered a consequential condition to his right knee; Kumar v Royal Comfort Bedding Pty Ltd and Moon v Conmah Pty Ltd discussed; the evidence does not establish on the balance of probabilities that the applicant suffered an injury to his left shoulder; matter referred for assessment of permanent impairment of the applicant’s left knee, lumbar spine, right shoulder, cervical spine, right knee and for assessment of scarring; award for the respondent on the claim for injury/ consequential condition to the left shoulder.
DETERMINATIONS MADE:	1. The applicant suffered an injury to his left lower extremity (knee), lumbar spine, right upper extremity (shoulder) and cervical spine in the course of his employment with the respondent on 7 February 2013 and thereafter owing to the nature and conditions of his employment with the respondent on 28 October 2020. 2. As a result of the injuries referred to in paragraph 1 above, the applicant suffered a consequential condition to his right lower extremity (knee). 3. Award for the respondent on the claim for injury/ consequential condition to the left upper extremity (shoulder). 4. The matter is remitted to the President for referral to a Medical Assessor for determination of the permanent impairment arising from the following: (a) date of injury: 7 February 2013 and nature and conditions of employment to 28 October 2020; (b) body systems referred: left lower extremity (knee), lumbar spine, right upper extremity (shoulder), cervical spine, right lower extremity (knee), scarring (TEMSKI), and (c) method of assessment: whole person impairment. 5. The documents to be referred to the Medical Assessor to assist with the determination are to include the following: (a) this Certificate of Determination and Statement of Reasons; (b) Application to Resolve a Dispute and attached documents; (c) Reply and attached documents, and (d) applicant’s Application to Admit Late Documents dated 20 January 2022 and attached documents. 6. By agreement of the parties at the conciliation/arbitration hearing on 31 January 2022, the permanent impairment from each of the claimed impairments may be aggregated by the Medical Assessor.

STATEMENT OF REASONS

BACKGROUND

The applicant commenced employment with the respondent in or about August 1994, and in the course of that employment worked at Woolworths warehouse distribution centres.
The applicant’s uncontested statement evidence is that he was required to repetitively bend and lift stock, including heavy boxes and was often…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

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Details

AGLC: Paris v Woolstar Pty Ltd [2022] NSWPIC 83
Case: [2022] NSWPIC 83
Decision Date: 28 February 2022

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Paris, brought a claim against Woolstar Pty Ltd for permanent impairment compensation, disputing certain injuries and their causation. The parties contested whether Paris suffered injury to his cervical spine, left shoulder, or a consequential condition in his right knee. The matter was heard in the Workers Compensation Court of New South Wales.

The court was tasked with determining the validity of Paris’ claims regarding the injuries to his cervical spine, left shoulder, and right knee, as well as the consequential condition to his right knee. The court considered whether the evidence presented established the injuries on the balance of probabilities. The legal issues included whether contemporaneous complaints and investigations were sufficient to establish the injuries, and whether there was a causal link between the injuries and the alleged conditions.

The court applied a common-sense evaluation of the evidence, finding that Paris did indeed suffer an injury to his cervical spine, supported by contemporaneous complaints and investigations. Regarding the right knee, the court accepted that Paris suffered a consequential condition arising from the cervical spine injury. However, the evidence did not establish on the balance of probabilities that Paris suffered an injury to his left shoulder. The court referred the matter for assessment of permanent impairment of Paris’ left knee, lumbar spine, right shoulder, cervical spine, right knee, and for assessment of scarring. The court awarded Woolstar Pty Ltd on the claim for injury/consequential condition to the left shoulder.

The final orders of the court included the referral of the matter for further assessment and the awarding of costs to Woolstar Pty Ltd on the claim for injury/consequential condition to the left shoulder.

Orders