Pollard v Trude

The matter before the court was an appeal from Pollard against Trude, concerning an incident where Pollard was injured by a golf ball struck by Trude. The appellant, Pollard, claimed that Trude had failed to warn him adequately of the risk of being struck by the ball, despite calling out a warning. The court was required to determine whether Trude owed Pollard a duty to warn of the risk of harm, and whether the risk was "obvious" for the purposes of s 15 of the Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld). Additionally, the court needed to consider whether Pollard could have taken evasive action if a different warning had been given, and whether he breached any duty of care owed to Trude.

The court examined the circumstances under which Trude struck Pollard, including the warning given and the nature of the risk. It was found that Trude's warning, "Watch it, Errol" or "Watch out, Errol," did not adequately convey the imminent danger posed by the golf ball. The court also assessed whether the risk of harm was obvious to Pollard, as per s 14 of the Civil Liability Act 2003 (Qld). It was determined that while the general risk of being hit by a golf ball on a course was obvious, the specific risk in this context was not so apparent that it absolved Trude of the duty to warn. Furthermore, the court considered whether Pollard could have taken evasive action if Trude had shouted a warning or called out "Fore" instead. It was concluded that such warnings would have likely enabled Pollard to avoid the injury.

In the end, the court found that Trude owed Pollard a duty to warn of the specific risk of being struck by the golf ball, and this duty was not negated by the obviousness of the general risk. The court also found that Pollard did not breach any duty of care owed to Trude, as the risk was not so obvious as to absolve him from liability. Additionally, the court upheld the primary judge's finding that Pollard voluntarily accepted the risk of injury by standing in the location where the incident occurred, knowing that Trude was about to take his shot.

The appeal was dismissed with costs awarded to Trude.